The deadline until which household consumers can conclude electricity supply contracts on the free market was extended by the regulator to 31 March, said Vice President of the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) Zoltan Nagy-Bege.
Nagy-Bege explained that this is the period during which household consumers can conclude contracts on the competitive market with their supplier, and which is being extended until 31 March, while the tariff in the competitive offer shall apply as of 1 January. Up until now, this term was 1 February and ANRE’s proposal for a two-month extension is intended to give consumers time to make this decision, and allow providers a respite as well, because if they have a very large number of incoming consumer requests to handle in just one month, they will virtually be unable to process them.
As of 1 January 2021, all Romanian households are supplied with electricity on the free market, at unregulated prices. However, many of residential consumers are still not aware of this change and will most likely continue to be supplied under the universal service contracts, which is in principle designed for other purposes such as clients in remote areas or when the market supplier fails to meet its obligation.