The Ministry of Energy published, on Friday evening, the draft Emergency Ordinance on the extension of the price cap for electricity until June 30, 2025 and for natural gas until March 31, 2026. "This normative act aims to establish the following temporary measures: granting support measures similar to those included in Emergency Ordinance no. 27/2022 on the measures applicable to final customers in the electricity and natural gas market during the period April 1, 2022 - March 31, 2023, with subsequent amendments and completions, respectively capping the final invoiced prices and compensating the difference from the budget, for electricity consumers, during the period April 1, 2025 - June 30, 2025; granting support measures similar to those included in Emergency Ordinance no. 27/2022 on the measures applicable to final customers in the electricity and natural gas market during the period April 1, 2022 -March 31, 2023, with subsequent amendments and completions, respectively the capping of final invoiced prices and the compensation of the difference from the budget, for natural gas consumers, during the period April 1, 2025 - March 31, 2026", the draft's substantiation note reads.Thus, the three maximum price caps for electricity will be maintained until the end of June 2025, of 0.68 RON/kWh, 0.80 RON/kWh and 1.3 RON/kWh, VAT included, depending on consumption, and of 0.31 and 0.37 RON/kWh, VAT included, for natural gas.At the same time, the document stipulates that the Ministry of Labor, Family, Youth and Social Solidarity will be obliged to develop, together with other relevant institutions, a methodology for establishing the criteria for identifying and qualifying energy consumers for the application of appropriate social measures and/or financial support and to issue, by June 15, 2025, a Government Decision on the implementation of that methodology and on the amount of support granted.The draft emergency ordinance mentions that the extension of the application of some of the protection measures included in Emergency Ordinance no. 27/2022 on the measures applicable to final customers in the electricity and natural gas market during the period April 1, 2022-March 31, 2023, with subsequent amendments and completions, was necessary given the existing situation at national and international level, determined by the still high level of electricity and natural gas prices, mainly due to the current geopolitical context, so that the prices for electricity and natural gas paid by final customers do not affect economic competitiveness and do not aggravate the level of energy poverty.
The 2025 edition of the year’s first major film fest in Europe (and one of the biggest worldwide), the Berlin International Film Festival, took place between 13 and 23 February. My notes come with a bit of delay, as I was also hit by the festival flu that got so many of us sniffling and […]
In the absence of current negative influences, Romania’s economy could have an annual growth potential of 3-4%. Political instability and global geopolitical risks are dampening growth. Economic growth in 2024 was driven by wage increases and accelerating consumption, satisfied however largely through imports. Due to a decline in domestic economic competitiveness, net exports contributed negatively […]
The Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) announced on Thursday, March 13, the launch of a new financial education section on the BVB Research Hub platform, dedicated to retail investors. The capital market operator said that it started this project out of the need to increase the level of financial education and promote the investment culture. It […]
The Romanian governing coalition's presidential candidate, Crin Antonescu, announced on Thursday, March 13, that he is launching a podcast designed to popularize his candidacy before the May elections. Antonescu, who is backed by the alliance made up of the Liberals (PNL), Social Democrats (PSD), the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians (UDMR), and the minorities, stated that he will […]
Some 4,500 teachers will learn about rights and responsibilities online, accessibility, inclusion, online well-being, and ethics as part of Incubatorul Civic Digital (ICD - The Civic Digital Incubator), a digital citizenship and democratic culture project implemented by Institutul Intercultural Timișoara, Asociația TechSoup and Școala de Valori. The project, which offers free training, is aimed at […]
Mihaela Murariu, Attorney at Law at Grecu Partners Business Law Firm, analyzes the impact of Artificial Intelligence on personal data protection. Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a ubiquitous technology, used in more and more fields, from marketing and healthcare to recruitment and financial services. However, the widespread use of AI raises numerous questions about privacy […]
