Electricity producers in Romania, as well as suppliers, in accordance with the law, must participate in power exchange. Gas producers are obliged to conclude contracts on a centralized market by the end of this year, in accordance with the ANRE regulations, and the Ministry of Energy has extended this obligation to producers of renewable energy. In this way, ministry officials expect to restore order in electricity and gas markets and eliminate suspicious transactions with low-cost electricity and green certificates.
This does not mean that the Ministry of Energy is not required to publish test results in company Electrica, which is expected to be completed soon, but it has not resulted in specific activities for now. Subject of the check are suspicious transactions with certificates, though legal, between company Electrica and EPD Renewables (1.6 million green certificates have been purchased and the value of the transaction amounted to EUR 60 million, with a delivery period by 2019).
In order to eliminate disturbances in the markets of electricity and green certificates, the Ministry of Energy has adopted a measure in accordance with which as of July 01, 2017 green certificates will be traded only on the centralized market, on a special platform of OPCOM Power Exchange. Producers of renewable energy, as well as suppliers, will be obliged to trade with green certificates solely on the centralized market. It will be allowed to conclude bilateral agreements that will be effective by July 01, 2017 until the entry into force of this measure.
By April 01, 2017 ANRE shall elaborate regulatory framework necessary for the functioning of the centralized market of green certificates, which represent the measure of state support to renewable energy.
Producers of electricity from coal will also trade on OPCOM trading platform. They still have the obligation to put all electricity amount on the power exchange, and that this amount is visible to everyone, said Iulian Iancu, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for the Industry.
He claims that the new Energy Law, recently adopted by the Parliament, does not give advantage to coal producers, or corrects the discrimination to which they were previously exposed. They were given the opportunity to build their energy mix so that they can cope with the competition, or to keep their participation in the competitive platform, concluded Iancu.
