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IMF: Deregulation of gas prices for the domestic consumers should be started again
Deregulation of gas prices for the domestic consumers should be started again, as an additional support is ensured to the most vulnerable, the Final Statement of the International Monetary Fund referring to Article IV of 2015, reads.
'Deregulation of the gas and electricity market for the industrial consumers is a major achievement. It should be followed by re-starting the process of deregulation of gas prices for the domestic consumers, by ensuring at the same time an additional support to the most vulnerable consumers,' the IMF Statement says.
Prime minister Victor Ponta has announced on Monday that the Romanian Government did not come to an agreement with the international financiers regarding the increase of the natural gases' prices and the restructuring of the Hunedoara, Oltenia energy complexes, a reason why another Letter of Intent will not be sealed, adding that the rest of the goals are fulfilled, though.
According to the Romanian Prime minister, the agreement is still in force, and the two matters will be discussed again in April, one of those topics referring to continuing the agenda of liberalizing the gas prices.
At the beginning of December 2014, the Department for Energy had said the price of the natural gas produced in Romania and paid by the population, would not grow until July 1 2015, and that the Government was to draft, together with the Energy regulator (ANRE) a new liberalisation graphic for the period between July 1 2015 - July 1 2021, which will consider the decreasing trend of the hydrocarbons' prices' evolution in the region, as well as the longer period of alignment as agreed with the international creditors.
The full liberalisation of the natural gas market, for the domestic consumers included, was foreseen for December 31 2018, but the Romanian Parliament has voted last year for a prolongation of this deadline by two and a half years.