Rezolv Energy has signed a 10-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with Dutch retailer Ahold Delhaize that will take power from the 1.3 GWp Dama solar project in Romania, which is set to become the largest onshore renewable energy project in the European Union. The deal also covers the 300 MW Dunarea East wind farm.
Under the agreement, Ahold Delhaize will buy 370 GWh of renewable electricity a year, roughly 14% of the combined output of the two projects, PV Tech reported. According to the retailer, that volume is equal to about 10% of its estimated total European electricity use by 2030. Ahold Delhaize aims to source 100% renewable electricity by 2030.
The Dama project
Dama is located in Arad County in western Romania. Its modules will cover more than 1,000 hectares, and the plant is expected to generate about 1,800 GWh of electricity a year once it is running.
Rezolv secured €561 million (US$637 million) of construction financing for the project in September. It has now received the final legal approval it needs to start building, and construction is expected to begin shortly. Commercial operation is expected in the second half of 2028.
The project is backed by two contracts for difference awarded by Romania's Ministry of Energy in 2025, in an auction that allocated more than 1.4 GW of solar capacity. Rezolv also plans to add a battery energy storage system at the site, and 82 hectares of the grounds will be set aside as a nature reserve.
A growing corporate market in south-eastern Europe
The Ahold Delhaize contract is Rezolv's eighth VPPA in Romania and Bulgaria. The company's portfolio also includes several wind farms, among them the 461 MW VIFOR wind farm in Buzău County, whose first phase has just started operating.
"Ahold Delhaize has become a key corporate investor in Romania's energy transition," said Alastair Hammond, CEO of Rezolv Energy.
In a virtual PPA, the buyer does not take physical delivery of the electricity. Instead, the two sides settle the difference between an agreed fixed price and the market price, while the buyer receives the guarantees of origin. This allows a retailer with stores in several countries to support a single large project in a market where land and solar resources are cheaper.
Combining solar and wind output in one contract also gives the buyer a smoother supply profile than solar alone, since wind often produces more power in the evening and in winter.
What it means for European developers
The deal shows that large international buyers are now willing to sign long-term contracts for gigawatt-scale projects in Romania alongside state support. For developers in the Balkans, pairing a state contract for difference with a corporate PPA, and blending solar with wind and storage, is becoming a practical way to finance gigawatt-scale plants.
Source: PV Tech
