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The national energy system might face its most serious crisis in the past two decades
Romania's national energy system might face its most serious crisis in the past two decades because of market distortions as a result of unfair competition among producers who, in their quest for market share, use unorthodox methods, Director General of the Oltenia Energy Complex Laurentiu Ciurel said Thursday.
He mentioned a plummeting in hydropower generation as a result of drought and the competition to the national grid coming from the producers of energy from renewable sources by irrational development.
"We are doing nothing to stop these massive outputs. If, after this normal summer, because 2015 was a typical summer, which the summers of 2013 and 2014 were not, a typical winter follows, then the Romanian energy system risks facing a tough time it did not have in the past 20 years. The bulbs risk staying out," said Ciurel.
In his opinion, this crisis is likely to emerge in seven-eight months' time because there are many incorrect things happening in the energy system and the existing regulations leave much to be desired.
In his turn, Chairman of the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) Niculae Havrilet countered that there is no risk of such crisis.
"I believe the national energy system is very balanced; we have more sources, which makes us think there will be no special problems," said Havrilet.
And for the energy prices, Havrilet said there will be no reason for their increase, not even if energy imports are being resorted to because import and export prices are similar.
State Secretary with the Ministry of Energy, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and the Business Environment Bogdan Badea gave assurances that all the measures have been taken for Romania to cope with the winter consumption peaks without any problem.