Speaking at an energy conference, the European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans said that there is no future for coal in Europe, and Romania should follow Germany in phasing out the use of coal in thermal power plants. Timmermans stressed that there is no more demand for coal. If this is added to the financial problems that the industry already encounters, it can be seen that the industry has no future, but the people who work in mining have it, urging Romania to mobilize the fair transition mechanism to make sure that the mining regions redefine themselves, that there will be new possibilities there.
He expressed hope that Romania will soon come up with a plan to give up coal-based energy. Germany has made plans to give up coal by 2038. He recommended Romania to look at the agreement reached in Germany in this regard, as not only the authorities and the coal industry were involved in the talks, but also the miners’ unions and local and regional authorities, precisely to put on paper a realistic plan to give up coal by adopting social measures, investment, and restructuring of mining regions. He also said that Romania has a vast potential for renewable energy and that natural gas should be regarded as a transition solution, not an end goal. In terms of mobility, Timmermans believes that electric vehicles will become more affordable even for people with lower incomes in the near future.
