The Federation of Associations of Energy Utility Companies (ACUE) fully supports the liberalization of the gas market in Romania with the condition of existence of the necessary elements to ensure its functioning transparently, efficiently, guaranteeing the non-discriminatory access of the participants, according to a press release energynomics.ro.

According to representatives of the Association, ”in this moment, the Romanian natural gas market does not fulfill the indispensable preconditions necessary to enable the completion of this step and, therefore, we believe that launching this process without the appropiate prior preparation would have negative effects on the natural gas market, likely to affect the public interest, especially in the next winter”, the release reads.

The main reasons for which ACUE pleads for the postponement of the gas purchase prices’ deregulation, set at this time on April 1 2017, are:

• The deregulation of the purchase prices for natural gas – would lead to a price increase for residential customers and for the heat producers which today benefit from a purchase price determined by Government decision;

Thus, if you currently purchase cost of natural gas to the regulated market is at a level of 60 lei / MWh, deregulation of this cost item will result in a first step to an immediate increase it to the level acquisition cost for the free market, which currently stands between 72-80 lei / MWh, as shown in the few transactions concluded to date on centralized markets.

Regarding the outlook for winter 2017-2018, forecasts on the import price of natural gas, which, in the absence of a fair price for gas from domestic production, the result of supply and demand in a liquid market will remain functional and the only price reference gas market indicates the end of a very important increase in the cost of natural gas as a commodity -about 100 lei / MWh in Q3 and 104 lei / MWh in Q4.

• Deregulation gradual acquisition of natural gas – is not a barrier to boosting competition given that at this time any client, including household could change its supplier of natural gas, but this does not currently happen in a meaningful way just because the natural gas market in Romania lacks mechanisms to generate adequate liquidity and thus create conditions for customers as they have more options in terms of choice of supplier;

• The gradual deregulation of natural gas acquisition – should not be grounds for infringement on the allocation of European funds for infrastructure project BRUA. The allocation of additional gas amounts to approximately 65-70% of domestic production which, at this moment, are in the free market, not consequently a solution to this problem;

• The distribution companies and regulated supply of natural gas practice a tariff of distribution that a margin of supply which are set by the National Regulatory Authority for Energy in Romania (ANRE) and today around 30% of the final price of natural gas ( without taxes).

ACUE is confident that all these reasons are properly understood and that the competent authorities will take the best measures to avoid major distortions in the gas market, following a hasty unprepared properly liberalization.