Romania struggles to meet deadline for submitting National Energy and Climate Plan

Romania will not be able to revise its National Energy and Climate Plan (National Integrated Energy and Climate Change Plan) by the announced deadline set by the Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union, namely by 30 June 2024. Last December, the European Commission provided Romania with feedback, criticizing the country for insufficiently ambitious targets, for example in the area of renewable energy deployment.

Romania’s Ministry of Energy had originally planned to submit a revised version of the national plan by the end of April. However, this is very unlikely to happen, Euractiv reported, citing a statement by Elena Popescu, director general of the energy and environment division at Romania’s Ministry of Energy.

“If we refer to the renewable energy target, which is the most debated, the figure in the PNIESC is 36.2%, and we are trying to increase it through this revision, which we are carrying out based on consultations and the Commission’s recommendations. To be completely honest with you, it is unlikely that we will reach 41%, as set out by the much-discussed formula attached to the directive. For the decarbonisation transition process, we will use the resources available to Romania, because we are a country with a balanced potential in our energy mix, and we are also moving towards decarbonisation,” Popescu said of the disputed share of planned renewable energy.

European Commission’s criticisms

In its original draft, Romania stated that it had the potential to become a major player in achieving the European Union’s energy efficiency targets. In concrete terms, Romania aimed to reduce primary energy consumption by 5% and final energy consumption by 2% by 2030 compared with 2019. The European Commission assessed the level of ambition as very low. The long-term target, which set out to reduce primary energy consumption by 52% and final energy consumption by a further 59% by 2050, appeared to be a more determined commitment to a sustainable future.

Regarding investment costs, the plan stated that EUR 127 billion would be needed to achieve the goals of Romania’s energy strategy. Although the draft included a partial assessment of investment needs, it did not specify the use of EU-level funding sources such as the Modernisation Fund. The European Commission therefore considered the plan unsuitable for attracting additional investment in the clean energy transition.

Another criticism concerned the consideration of energy poverty. Although the draft provided some information on the number of households at risk of energy poverty (specifically, 15.2% of the population was unable to keep their homes at an adequate temperature in 2022), it omitted more specific measures and timelines for addressing the issue.

Last but not least, the Commission recommended improving the environmental objectives, including assessing the impact of adopted policies on air quality (for example, in relation to the projected increase in bioenergy) and specifying how the commitment to no net land take would be met. The proposal for a socially fair energy transition also needed better integration, particularly with regard to coal regions.