Everything you need to know to become a prosumer

Facing the challenges of the current climate context, rising electricity prices and Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels, we find the key solution in solar energy.

How is this result achieved? It’s very simple: we transform the light received for free, from the sun, into electricity, with the help of photovoltaic panel systems. After the process, the resulting energy will cover a large part of our electricity consumption, or even our entire consumption.

The potential of photovoltaic panels stands out for the ease and efficiency with which they capture sunlight and transform it into energy. In just 14 days, enough energy arrives on the roof of a house to power a home for a year.

Energy produced by photovoltaic panels has become the cheapest alternative in Europe. Over the last 10 years the price of photovoltaic panels has dropped by up to 95%. (IRENA, 2021)

How can we maximize the energy of photovoltaic panels?

This is where the role of the prosumer comes into play.

The prosumer is someone who produces electricity through a photovoltaic system and uses this energy for self-consumption, feeding the surplus into the grid. According to the ANRE Report on Monitoring Prosumer Activity, in Romania, at the end of 2021 there were 13,597 prosumers in Romania and it is expected to be 30,000 prosumers by 2022.

The prosumer’s specific activity is the production of electricity, but it can sell and store this energy. Energy is produced both in its building and in a city block, in a residential area and also in commercial or industrial buildings. The condition is that an independent, non-domestic consumer of renewable energy, who undertakes these activities, does not use them for commercial purposes, but only to meet his own consumptio

The sale of energy will be made to a single authorized electricity supplier. The prosumer concludes a supply contract with it.

As for the price of the energy produced and sold, it is calculated based on the weighted average price, recorded in the Day-Ahead Market (MGP), in the month in which the energy was produced. The market in which the sale takes place is competitive and the price is determined based on the supply/demand relationship.

What is the day-ahead market? According to OPCOM this is defined as a component of the wholesale electricity market. In the wholesale market, transactions are carried out hourly, with active electricity, and delivery is made the day after the transaction was made.

How does the prosumer get his money? The regulatory framework provides for regularization based on installed powers up to 200 kW, or between 200 kW and 400 kW, as follows:

Power up to 200 kW: suppliers are obliged to invoice either the difference between the energy consumed and the energy produced, or the difference between the energy supplied and the energy consumed (if the prosumer has produced more energy than consumed). The additional energy will be transferred and can be used 24 months after the billing date.

Power between 200 kW and 400 kW: suppliers have the obligation to purchase the energy produced at a price equal to the weighted average price, recorded on the Next Day Market, in the same month in which the energy was produced. Furthermore, suppliers are obliged to adjust the energy supplied and consumed by the network in the prosumers’ bill.

When did I become a consumer?

According to the prosumer guide, the prosumer journey begins with the installation of photovoltaic systems. If they are mounted on the roof of buildings, a building permit is no longer required. For the assembly of panels on the ground, however, it is mandatory to obtain permission. To obtain authorization, the prosumer will submit the project he wishes to implement, the technical details of which are captured.

Step 2 is to identify your connection solution. The prosumer needs the resolution sheet, drawn up by the distributor, in a single copy, in original, and the electrical project, approved by the distributor and drawn up by an electrician authorized by ANRE, in a single copy.

In point 3, the prosumer must present: the identity document (if it is a natural person) or a copy of the tax registration certificate (if it is a legal person), and the ownership document which gives the right to use the land for which the connection is requested. If the land is rented, the owner’s notarial consent will also be necessary.

The distributor provides the prosumer with: a copy of the location notice, the survey of the connection solutions to the electricity grid, the connection notice and the prosumer’s request.

The ANRE electrician provides technical and energy data on the land/space where the electricity will be produced or consumed.

For phase 4, the following are needed from the distributor: the user’s application (to contract the work to the distributor, together with a designer), a copy of the technical approval for the connection and an agreement from the land owner to conclude an agreement with the network operator.

The prosumer will present the identity document (if he is a natural person) or a copy of the tax certification (if he is a legal person).

In phase 5, the distributor will provide a copy of the technical approval for the connection and one of the connection contract. The ANRE authorized electrician authorizes the electrical project by the distributor, in the original.

Once the connection system has been commissioned, the grid operator energizes the user’s electrical systems for a trial period.

To obtain the energization of the electrical systems, the prosumer will submit a request to the network manager, accompanied by the following documents: the user system file, the technical data (these will be obtained from the ANRE authorized electrician), the commissioning program of the user systems and the work status report integrating the energy capacity into the monitoring systems (these will be obtained from the ANRE authorized electrician or the distributor), and an electricity supply contract.

To obtain the connection certificate, the prosumer requires a declaration from the executor certifying compliance with the requirements of the technical connection notice, the technical rules and the conditions that allow the connection to be energized.

The prosumer will obtain documentation from the ANRE authorized distributor or installer certifying that the checks and tests have been carried out in accordance with current regulations. The ANRE authorized electrician will provide the user installation diagram and the network connection diagram, approved by the network manager.

The conclusion of the contract of sale – purchase of energy from the supplier will require a connection certificate, which is obtained from the distributor.

The definitive energization will take 10 days and will be carried out within 10 days by the network manager once the connection certificate has been issued and the electricity transmission, distribution or supply contract has been concluded. The necessary documents will be: the purchase contract from the supplier and a connection certificate obtained from the distributor.