Romanian industrial companies will get EUR 750 mln facilities on energy bills

The largest industrial energy consumers in Romania will get a ten-year facility for green certificate acquisition, which will save them costs worth about EUR 750 million, the Government has decided. However, this will add one percent to the energy costs for other consumers, who will have to buy more green certificates to support the existing subsidy scheme for green energy producers. The population, but also for smaller Romanian firms will se increases in electricity bills. There will be about 300 large industrial companies in Romania that will benefit from this measure, as they will be allowed to buy up to 85 percent less green certificates than they currently have to buy. The ratios are established on the rate of energy costs in their total production costs. Some of the main beneficiaries of this decision are aluminum producer Alro Slatina, steel producers ArceloMittal Galati and Tenaris Silcotub, and producers of construction materials, such as cement producers Lafarge, Holcim and CarpatCement Holding. Alro, which is the only aluminum producer in Romania and the largest in the region, was most affected by the support scheme set up by the Romanian Government to encourage green energy production. In March, Alro said that it can no longer sustain the high energy costs and may have to close a part of the production after it had paid some EUR 39 million for green certificates in 2013. Alro posted EUR 17 million losses last year. The company’s representatives were the most vocal in calling on the Government to cap green certificate costs for large industrial companies. The support scheme will be applied starting August 1, 2014, after it will also be notified to the European Commission. Andrei Chirileasa, andrei@romania-insider.com