Energy prices cause growing concern
The government of Romania is working to help those affected by the rising energy prices.
Ştefan Stoica, 16.09.2021, 14:00
A committee has been set up in the Parliament of Romania to investigate the substantial increase in the price of natural gas and electricity. The committee found that these increases are in line with European trends.
Energy prices in the continental market have reached record-high levels, fuelled by the costs of green certificates and the natural gas prices. Another problem for the European energy market is the uncertainty around gas imports from Russia, given that European storage facilities were only 70% full.
The European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans said the unprecedented electricity prices in member states prove that the Union must give up fossil fuels and step up the transition to green energy. He also noted that, while fossil fuel prices rose substantially, the costs of renewable energy remain low and stable.
EU member states like Italy, Spain and Greece responded to the rise in conventional energy prices and have already announced aid measures to help people pay their bills. In Bucharest as well, the government is planning to help households cover their electricity and natural gas bills.
Under a draft emergency order first discussed on Wednesday, the government would subsidise electricity prices by 3.6 eurocents per KWh and natural gas bills by 25%. Beneficiaries will include households that use between 30 and 200 KW of electricity per month and between 100 and 1,200 cubic metres of natural gas per year. The average price used by the government in its plans is 16 eurocents per KW, and bills will be around 3.6 euro smaller per 100 KW.
The government is also looking at options to introduce a natural gas price ceiling. PM Florin Cîţu said this should not affect investments in the economy, and that the measure requires talks with the Competition Council and the European Commission. According to the energy minister Virgil Popescu, such a ceiling would discourage foreign investments in Romanias electricity and natural gas extraction markets, because companies would be forced to sell for less than the market price.
The Social Democratic Party in opposition announced that in the forthcoming period they will table a bill introducing a ceiling on electricity and natural gas prices for household consumers, as a stop-gap solution. The Social Democrats vice-president Mihai Tudose criticised the right-of-centre government for deregulating the energy market at the worst possible time, when the domestic output is considerably below its potential. (tr. A.M. Popescu)
