The operators fulfilled all their obligations under the legal framework in force, including on the storage side, even if the Romanian state failed to meet the payment deadlines established by law, said on Tuesday Daniela Dărăban, executive director of the Federation of Companies Associations of Energy Utilities (ACUE).
“The suppliers have made every effort to apply the legal framework in force and what is happening even today, with the correct expectation, is that the Romanian state also applies the legal framework in force and respects the payment terms established by law. On our side we can to say with all responsibility that the obligations are fulfilled. That is, any potential escape is a matter that can be justified by each individual operator, but the operators have fulfilled all their obligations, including the storage part. We speak with great appreciation that we are in a safety situation in the cold season vis-a-vis the amount of gas in the warehouse, but we must say that the vast majority of the stored quantities were stored by the suppliers. This year, the storage obligations of the suppliers increased a lot and led to fulfillment of these obligations even if the Romanian state failed to comply with its obligations, also established by law, regarding ensuring the necessary flow within the terms established by the legislative framework,” said Dărăban, according to Agerpres.
She emphasized that the Romanian state, from the privileged position it has, sometimes has totally inappropriately “burdened” the business environment when there were certain syncopes in the invoicing part.
“If the Romanian state is in a privileged position and it is often not a problem to use this power, which is ok as long as it is justified, when the operators, for various reasons, mainly last year due to the multiple changes made to the legislative framework, there were certain failures in the invoicing part, a matter assumed and communicated transparently even to customers, the state has in a way, I say, totally inappropriately attacked some economic agents, an entire economic sector, that is, of the business environment. In the distribution – supply sector we have 22,000 employees and the vast majority of them are Romanians. So, I think this situation is a bit inappropriate, to cast all kinds of suspicions on economic agents, which I feel and these days I don’t understand why we have this inappropriate appetite, such approaches towards the business environment,” she said.
The executive director of ACUE claims that, if there are suspicions regarding certain activities, they must be treated in compliance with the legal framework and European standards, and in public “you go out and bring accusations when you have firm, definite data”.
In her opinion, the suppliers have proven their resilience and have pre-financed these schemes and will continue to ensure the financing of these schemes for at least four to six months.
“I come from a school where if you have data you speak, if you have certain suspicions you speak directly opposite the one you are targeting and with all the data and legal procedures in force. (…) There are investors, there are economic agents who they must be treated to the standards of European legislation and to the standards that we impose on ourselves through the procedure that we are now considering with regard to entering the OECD. So, I say that we must give up these habits. The suppliers have proven their resilience, have pre-financed these schemes and continue to ensure the financing of these schemes for at least four to six months,” added the head of ACUE.