Alro: “We cannot afford Romania’s high eco-tax on energy for another year"

Aluminum maker Alro Slatina can no longer afford the high energy costs it paid last year, USD 66 million, and cannot see a bright future for the aluminum industry in Romania under these circumstances, according to Gheorghe Dobra, CEO of Alro Slatina, quoted by Agerpres. Energy expenses, including the eco-tax via green certificates, exceeded USD 1,000 per ton last year. Alro has invested some USD 500 million in the last 10 years, USD 100 million of which into reducing energy consumption and in environment protection programs. Alro has been complaining about the increasing quota for buying green certificates, which is mandatory for all large energy consumers, irrespective of how many electricity they actually used. The state has promised a cap on the green certificates acquired by large consumers, but the measure is yet to be applied. The deadline to submit applications to be exempt from paying the extra green certificates was prolonged until December 1. “We’re afraid this might be delayed until next year, because we cannot afford another year with such high costs,” concluded Dobra. editor@romania-insider.com