The European Union will take into account the specific energy mix of each country, and Romania will have the freedom to choose how it will reach environmental targets by 2030, thus confirming that Brussels will accept natural gas as a transition solution for Romania, said Romanian Minister of Economy and Energy Virgil Popescu.
Minister Popescu said that the European Council reached an agreement on reducing carbon dioxide emissions by at least 55 % by 2030 and Romania has ensured that its interests are covered, including the use of natural gas as a transition fuel.
Earlier this month, State Secretary at the Ministry of Economy and Energy Niculae Havrilet said that 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. He 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.
