Romania’s data centers represent 3% of national electricity consumption out of the approximately 50,818 billion kWh used nationwide.
In 2019 this percentage was 2.1%, according to Tema Energy estimates, but the intense digitalization in recent years and the emergence of new data centers contribute to the increase in consumption.
This phenomenon has become more widespread, with the European Commission expecting electricity consumption in data centers to exceed 3.2% in 2030.
Given that 35-40% of a data center’s operational expenses are allocated to electricity, the price increases of recent months will affect the profitability of players in this market.
In Romania, the price of electricity on the spot market in January 2022 was 949 lei/MWh, 3.5 times higher than the price recorded in the same month last year (271 lei/MWh).
Also in February, the price was almost four times (3.98) higher – 932 lei/MWh in 2022, compared to 234 lei/MWh in February 2021.