Vulnerable energy consumers in Romania
Vulnerable energy consumers in Romania will be protected after July 1st as well
Leyla Cheamil, 15.04.2025, 13:50
The Ministry of Energy, together with the Ministry of Labor, will establish a support mechanism for vulnerable consumers, to be implemented as of July 1st, said on Monday, Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja, during an energy forum organized in Bucharest. He added that an update of the ceilings establishing the vulnerability threshold was also necessary to widen the range of beneficiaries, so as to cover all possible cases.
Sebastian Burduja has stated that three very applied technical meetings have already taken place in order to prepare this plan for vulnerable consumers, for whom paying utility bills is a burden. “Also, in this time frame, we want to increase this liquidity in the market, so that producers can sell more, suppliers can buy more, maybe even traders can trade more electricity, so that, in the end, prices have a correct evolution,” Sebastian Burduja said. He has also stressed that prices on the electricity and gas markets have experienced significant increases since the beginning of this year, with the halt of Russian gas transit through Ukraine.
The current natural gas price compensation scheme has been extended until April 1 next year. The continuation of the compensation-capping scheme until July 1 for electricity and until April 1 next year for gas aims to protect Romanians, Sebastian Burduja also said.
On the other hand, the President of the Competition Council, Bogdan Chiriţoiu, has drawn attention to the fact that the capping-compensation scheme for energy prices was introduced early, which was a positive thing, but the fact that the capping was established for everyone was excessive. Certain problems in the market, Bogdan Chiriţoiu explained, have allowed some to earn a lot of money, probably legal gains, but unjustified from the point of view of opportunity. He added that the capping should not be continued, but measures should be formulated to protect vulnerable consumers, while at the same time supporting large energy-consuming companies.
In turn, the president of the National Energy Regulatory Authority, George Niculescu, has stated that, regarding the period after the end of the energy price cap, he recommends that all consumers, including companies, check their supply contracts, so as not to find that they have been charged very high prices. He has also announced that an information campaign is being prepared for the period starting on July 1st, so that energy consumers know their rights. Representatives of the Federation of Energy Utility Companies Associations say that, until the moment of the elimination of the electricity price cap, the state should pay all outstanding amounts related to the compensation scheme. (MI)
