Talks between the Romanian Government and the European Commission (EC) are positive and it is likely that the EC will grant Romania a special treatment for using natural gas as a transition solution to carbon-free economy, said state Secretary at the Ministry of Economy and Energy Niculae Havrilet.
Havrilet said that Romania will be given a special treatment because it has its own gas production (Romania is currently the second largest gas producer in the EU). Therefore, natural gas should be included in some economically sustainable projects for a longer period of time.
He also noted that in a short time (10-15 years) the gas will be replaced, that is why Romania must focus on high-performance investments based on gas, which should last about 30 years.
Regarding financing the gas-related projects, Havrilet said that he believes that the EC will make an exception in case of Romania and grant financial aid to such project, while other countries, who import gas from Russia, will not get any financing. He reminded that the EC said that decarbonization can also be done using gas as a transition fuel, but with great care.
According to him, besides investments in gas-based electricity generation, Romania must also focus on increasing investments in renewable energy.
