The decision regarding the deadline by which Romania must phase-out coal in energy production must be taken at the level of Parliament, through a law, said the Director General of the Ministry of Energy, Elena Popescu, in within an event organized by Energynomics.
“It will be a coal phase out law, it is introduced as a reform in the PNRR. In this law we should establish those deadlines, probably 2030, which you saw in the minister’s statements. 2030, respectively 2032. They must be assumed at the level of the Parliament, it is not a decision of the Ministry of Energy, precisely because it implies social costs, professional reconversion, regional development,” said Elena Popescu, according to Agerpres.
The representative of the Ministry of Energy explained that this law is currently in an incipient phase.
“We are in an early stage of thinking about this law. I see it as a responsibility of all entities with responsibilities in the field. The law is in an incipient stage, it appeared in the context of negotiations on PNRR. (…) Our goal is not to decarbonize more slowly than the others, but to decarbonize in a realistic way, not to go even lower than we are, but to go with the others in decarbonization, and it to succeed “, stated Elena Popescu.
The director general of the Ministry of Energy stressed that currently entire areas of the country depend on an energy complex that uses coal for energy production, and the sudden disappearance of one of them would endanger all companies in the area.
“Romania must manage equally well not only the energy component for which the Ministry of Energy is responsible, but all the other components, which are very important, because there are impacted areas and which depend only on one operator. That is, the Hunedoara area depends only on CEH (Hunedoara Energy Complex), Târgu Jiu area depends only on the CEO (Oltenia Energy Complex). So all the companies, small businesses, everything that exists there depend only on the CEO. The CEO disappears, everything disappears,” Elena Popescu pointed out.
