The population gets a two-year respite from the increase of gas bills

The Department for Energy yesterday put up for public debate, the project for the expansion of the schedule for the liberalization of the price of natural gas for the population by 2021.

Răzvan Nicolescu, delegate minister for Energy told BURSA: "In the coming period I will be traveling a lot to Brussels to discuss this topic. I've already had the first talks with the Commission, which are encouraging for Romania. As you know, the current schedule is suspended and it stipulated that the price of domestic natural gas should converge with the European average by 2018".

According to data published by the authorities yesterday, between the end of 2012 and June 2014, the net monthly gain fell 0.59%, while the final price of natural gas paid by individual users increased 15.8%.

The Minister of Energy writes, in a press release: "As can be seen from our analysis, the liberalization schedule negotiated by Mr. Boc far outpaced the increase of the income of the population. Increasing the price of the natural gas produced in Romania expected to take place on October 1st, 2014, will no longer occur due to technical reasons, but I think that Romania's population needs a far longer break, until July 1st, 2016 - at the very least. I intend to negotiate this with the people in Brussels. We have supporting arguments pertaining to the population's living standard, as well as with the situation in other EU member states. I will use all the credibility I have in Brussels to obtain for Romania better terms for the population than the ones negotiated in 2012.

We absolutely have to do this because otherwise, the price of natural gas produced in Romania will increase by over 40% by July 1st, 2016, according to the old schedule".

According to data from the Department of Energy, between December 2012 - July 2014, the tariff for the distribution of natural gas has increased 35.43%, the price of storage has increased 54.79%, and the one for transport has nearly doubled. Also, the price of imported natural gas has decreased by 17%, and the price of domestically produced gas has increased 16.63%, according to the quoted source.

Răzvan Nicolescu considers that currently, the application of the schedule goes against the downward trend of the price of natural gas on a regional level, corroborated with the stagnation of the nominal net wage of the population and he says that domestic natural gas producers (e.g. Romgaz, OMV Petrom, Amroco) have posted very good financial results, including due to the increases in the price of natural gas.

Because of disagreements with the Directorate-General for Enterprise and Industry (the European Commission) concerning the rights of household consumers to get priority in being supplied with natural gas produced in Romania, the implementation of the schedule agreed in 2012 is currently suspended, and as a result, the hike of the price paid by household consumers for natural gas produced domestically scheduled for October 1st, 2014 has thus been cancelled.