The energy market cannot be functional if it is over-regulated, but the sudden transition to a completely free market can also be accompanied by dangers, said George Niculescu, president of the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) at the conference “Romanian Energy Market – Facts of 2025”.
“A truly functioning market cannot be built on regulation alone. You can’t regulate something that you have established is a free market. Regulations must establish a set of rules and correct them when they no longer correspond to the reality in the market. The sudden transition to a completely free market has to be done very carefully. The exit from the support scheme must be gradual, so that gas and energy consumers do not experience bill shocks. We need to be very careful in the future to protect consumers, especially the vulnerable ones, from further price hikes,” said Niculescu.
He said that this year will not be without its challenges and, although there are factors that could lead to higher gas and electricity prices, there are also solutions to counter these developments in the energy market.
ANRE approved in 2024 authorisations for new electricity generation capacity totalling 6,000 MW. “An essential condition for the issuance of the establishment authorisation is the certainty of project financing. We are certain that these 6,000 MW authorised for establishment in 2025-2026 will start producing and delivering electricity to our grids”, following investments of more than €3 billion. According to Mr Niculescu, 450 MW of those approved in 2024 are already operational, while another 72 MW are installed in energy storage units.
“Without a modern energy system, investments will bypass Europe and, implicitly, Romania. This is confirmed by the Competitiveness Compass launched by the European Commission,” he added.
In order to develop the energy market, it is essential to adapt the regulations in such a way as to attract serious investors capable of contributing to the increase in production capacity. To this end, ANRE has intervened on the interconnection regulation to introduce a filter to protect those investors willing to allocate “considerable sums to the electricity generation part.” This measure is intended to ensure that market development is based on solid and sustainable projects.
Another initiative aimed at supporting market stability is the introduction of the Market Maker concept. George Niculescu recalled that an order aimed at this regulation has been put out for public debate, being “basically a way for us to try to increase liquidity in the market.” The measure comes in response to the need to stimulate competition and ensure a better balance in the energy market.
However, a major challenge remains managing the transition to a fully liberalised market without exposing consumers to unexpected price fluctuations. In this respect, ANRE’s president stressed that “a sudden transition after 31 March 2025 to a fully liberalised market needs to be done very carefully.” In order to avoid negative impacts on consumers, a gradual exit from the support scheme is necessary so that “domestic and non-domestic consumers do not see shocks in their bills.” This preventive approach is essential to maintain market stability and protect vulnerable groups, insisted Mr Niculescu.
The conference “Romanian Energy Market – Facts of 2025” was organized by Energynomics with the support of our partners: Alive Capital, Elektra Renewable Support, Enevo Group, Hidroelectrica, Nano Energies. Software Media WEBUS 4 ENERGY, Think Blu Solution.