Romanians pay more for energy compared to other EU countries

Romanians have, in nominal terms, the lowest gas prices in the EU and almost the lowest electricity rates, but the population's low income make energy costs climb near or even above the EU average, reported to the purchasing power, shows the Eurostat report. Households in Romania were paying in the second half of 2010, EUR 10.52 per 100 kWh of electricity, up 8.1 percent compared to the same period in 2009. In purchasing power standards, the price doubles to EUR 20.25 per 100 kWh, more than the EU average of EUR 17.08. Romania ranks the seventh in the EU on electricity prices according to purchasing power parity. For natural gas, Romanians paid in the second half of last year EUR 7.73 per gigajoule, up by 4.3 percent over the same period in 2009, according to the Eurostat report. In purchasing power standards, the price increases almost twice to EUR 14.88, but still below the EU average of EUR 15.88. Read the full report here(PDF version). Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com (photo source: sxc.hu)