Basescu Says Complete Liberalization Of Energy and Gas Markets Should Wait Until 2015

05.07.2011 ZF English

Romanian President Traian Basescu said Saturday, after a meeting with the International Monetary Fund delegation, that the deregulation of gas and electricity prices for households should be put on hold until 2015.

The President said that complete deregulation needs to be delayed until around 2015, when Romania hopes to adopt the euro. The gas and electricity markets should be liberalized at separate points in time for corporate and household consumers, he said, because average Romanians earn much less than Eurozone citizens.

Early-February, the International Monetary Fund asked Romanian authorities to deregulate gas and electricity prices and to come up with a new price calculation formula. Later, the Government announced that a deregulation calendar would be set up by September 2011, and deregulation would unfold between 2013 and 2015.

Prime Minister Emil Boc said, in early February, that the Finance Ministry and Labor Ministry will define vulnerable consumers, and will create mechanisms to protect these consumers, considering the measures to be taken between 2013 and 2015.