The Mayor of Bucharest Nicusor Dan asked the Prime Minister Florin Citu for a loan from the Government, which will be used to finance the takeover of electricity and thermal energy producer ELCEN by the City Hall.
Dan said that the City Hall needs an advance in the amount of 30 % of the final sum of 220 million euros in order to pay the first installment for the takeover of ELCEN. He explained that the first installment amounts to 66 million euros, but the City Hall needs additional funds to pay some outstanding debt and to finalize the transaction by the end of the year.
He also supported the proposal of Energy Minister Virgil Popescu to introduce subsidies for district heating services providers.
Last week, the National Regulatory Authority for Energy (ANRE) has approved the new prices for providing thermal energy for district heating services, thus increasing the price by 86.58 % for services provided by ELCEN, from 35.6 to 66.5 euros/GCal. At the moment, two thirds of the price is covered by the Bucharest City Hall, while the consumers only pay one third.
