May 2026 – Confusing rules around standalone battery storage have long complicated Romania’s renewable energy goals. A legislative proposal aims to fix this by offering clearer rules to support the larger projects that the country needs.
1. Agricultural land and the extra muros constraint
Under current legislation, agricultural land located outside built-up areas (extra muros) is subject to legal protection to preserve its productive potential. As a general rule, construction on such land is prohibited.
As an exception, Land Law no. 18/1991 permits the development of renewable energy projects on extra muros agricultural land, provided the soil quality falls within classes III, IV, or V and the project footprint does not exceed 50 hectares. For these qualifying projects, the law waives the requirement for a Zonal Urbanism Plan (PUZ), theoretically streamlining the process to two main steps: (i) the endorsement for removal of the land from agricultural use, and (ii) the issuance of
