Romanian president Nicușor Dan has referred amendments to the Decarbonisation Law to the Constitutional Court, warning of risks to the environment and to the implementation of milestone 114 under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), according to a Presidency statement on August 26. The dispute could also affect EU funding linked to the reform.

The amendments, adopted by Parliament on August 5 and mainly supported by the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), change provisions governing the closure of coal- and lignite-fired power plants. The revised rules link the closure of some capacities to the availability of alternative low-carbon energy sources, potentially altering the timetable initially agreed under the PNRR.

The European Commission has warned that the amendments could represent a setback to a reform that had already been validated under the recovery plan and could have negative financial consequences for Romania.

A Commission spokesperson said the institution had taken note of the amendments, including the changes to the conditions for closing coal and lignite power plants. The Commission is assessing the implications for Romania’s compliance with its PNRR commitments.

Acting minister of investments and European projects Dragoș Pîslaru has warned that the changes could block the processing of Romania’s fifth and sixth PNRR payment requests, which together involve grants of approximately EUR 5 billion.

Pîslaru said on August 5 that the government would ask the president to return the legislation to Parliament for re-examination, arguing that its current form could jeopardise EU funding.

Milestone 114 concerns Romania’s decarbonisation commitments, including the gradual withdrawal of coal and lignite-based electricity generation. The original reform was designed to support the reduction of emissions from the power sector while ensuring the replacement of retiring capacity with cleaner energy sources.

The presidential referral now places the amendments before the Constitutional Court, adding another legal stage to legislation that has already raised concerns over Romania’s compliance with its PNRR commitments.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Alexandru Nechez)