Romania experiences significant growth in foreign direct investment projects

In 2025, Romania recorded a remarkable 16% increase in the number of announced foreign direct investment (FDI) projects, reaching a total of 109. This surge is particularly impressive given the overall 7% decline in FDI projects announced across Europe during the same year.

The revival of foreign direct investment flows in Romania has also been notable, rising from 5.6 billion euros in 2024 to 8.1 billion euros in 2025. This positions Romania as the EU country with the second highest growth in FDI projects, trailing only Greece. As a testament to this positive trend, the number of jobs generated by these investments surged by 39%, totaling 5,710 new positions.

Bucharest-Ilfov led the way with 45 FDI projects and created 754 jobs, averaging 17 jobs per project. Other regions also saw impressive contributions, with the North-West generating 1,375 jobs from 14 projects, and the Central region adding 1,108 jobs from 13 projects. In contrast, Sud-Vest Oltenia achieved 737 jobs from just four projects.

Despite some fluctuations in investor sentiment, with 52% of foreign investors expecting Romania's attractiveness to improve over the next three years, there was a slight dip in confidence compared to previous years. The attractiveness index for Romania fell from 58% in 2024 to below the 67% peak reached in 2024.

The FDI landscape in Romania has been largely concentrated in four key sectors: real estate and construction, consumer products and retail, technology, and energy. In fact, nearly 60% of the transactions over the last decade have been directed towards these areas.

Leading companies like OMV Petrom and ENGIE Romania have also made significant investments in 2025, with OMV Petrom investing close to 8 billion lei and planning to increase this to approximately 9 billion lei in 2026. ENGIE Romania has invested 716 million lei and operates around 250 MW of renewable energy capacities, with over 750 MW in advanced stages of development.

As Romania strengthens its position in the EU regarding FDI, it continues to show promise, particularly in renewable energy, where it is slightly above the EU average with around 48% of its energy coming from renewable sources. This positive trajectory reflects the resilience and potential of Romania's economy in the face of broader regional challenges.