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EnMin requested the EC to extend the deadline for closing the mines from 2018 to 2030
The most important thing the Romanian authorities requested the European Commission representatives was to obtain support to extend the deadline for closing the mines from 2018 to 2030, Energy Minister Andrei Gerea said after talks with the visiting Commission delegation at the Public Finances Ministry headquarters on Thursday.
"The most important thing that we requested was to get support for extending the deadline for closing the mines. In the event that we ask for or get to the conclusion that we must enter a programme of this kind, we want to be able to have more time at our disposal, namely from 2018 to 2030. /.../ It is written in the European regulation: the moment one, for example, requests state aid for the mining activity, then that mine must enter a close-down programme and, given such a situation, 2018 is not an acceptable deadline, from our viewpoint at least," Gerea explained.
The European Commission approved the rescue aid for Hunedoara Energy Company in April, as it deemed it in line with the European Union norms on state aid and Romania, moreover, pledged to put forward a restructuring plan meant to ensure the future viability of Hunedoara Company should the energy firm be not able to repay the rescue aid in six months.