The European Commission warned Romania on Wednesday to remove its cap on gas prices or potentially face legal action over the policy, which the EU executive branch said violates the bloc's energy market rules. Gas and power bills for Romanian households, small businesses and public institutions have been capped up to certain monthly consumption levels since November 2021, with suppliers compensated for the difference. In a notice published on Wednesday, the European Commission said the policy violates EU rules on the free formation of wholesale gas prices, since Romania's measure obliges firms to sell part of their production at a fixed wholesale price. "Regulated prices at the level of the EU-wide wholesale market distort price signals and effective market functioning," the Commission said. European wholesale gas prices began climbing in 2021 after Russia limited deliveries. Prices soared to record highs the following year when Moscow further slashed supplies after its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Romania's government has two months to respond to the EU warning, after which the Commission can refer the case to the EU's top court, if the matter is unresolved. Ahead of its May 18 presidential election run-off, Romania currently has an interim government which cannot issue decrees or introduce policies. Former Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu resigned on Monday after hard-right eurosceptic George Simion won the first round of the presidential election re-run. The president elected this month will appoint a new prime minister. In February, the former government extended the gas price cap for a year, and prolonged the power price limits until June, to rein in consumers' bills. Romania produces almost all the gas it consumes domestically, through producers OMV Petrom, state-owned Romgaz and offshore producer Black Sea Oil & Gas.
Ahold Delhaize, the owner of the local supermarket chains Mega Image and Profi, has appointed Xavier Piesvaux as country manager for Romania beginning January 1, 2025. Piesvaux, who was brand president of Mega Image from 2006 to 2015, will return to the country, where he will oversee the expansion of the company’s local brands Mega […]
Cargus, one of Romania’s leading courier companies, recorded a 15% rise in delivery volumes over the Black Friday weekend, 7-10 November, compared to the same period in 2024. In total, the company delivered almost half a million parcels per day nationwide. These results confirm the positive trend of the e-commerce market and highlight Cargus’s strong […]
Romanian authorities carried out preventive evacuations in the village of Plauru in Tulcea county early Monday, November 17, after a drone attack on the Ukrainian port of Izmail ignited a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) vessel located close to the Romanian border, officials said. The fire, triggered during overnight strikes by Russian forces on targets near […]
Two new polls by survey companies CURS and AtlasIntel show an extremely tight race for Bucharest general mayor, a position left vacant after former mayor Nicusor Dan became president of Romania earlier this year. Social Democrat (PSD) candidate Daniel Băluţă tops the CURS poll, with 27%, followed by center-right candidates Ciprian Ciucu (National Liberal Party […]
UNICEF is inviting teachers and students across Romania to take part in the 2025 edition of the World's Largest Lesson, held between November 17 and 25 to mark World Children's Day. Celebrated each year on November 20, the day commemorates the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, "the […]
PPC Group has expanded its renewable energy portfolio in Romania with the addition of a new 130 MW photovoltaic plant in Călugăreni, located 40 kilometers south of Bucharest. The project has recently been connected to the national grid. The plant was built using 227,240 bifacial photovoltaic panels and is expected to generate more than 193 […]
