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The Government approved on Thursday, at the proposal of the Ministry of Energy, the Memorandum regarding the initiation of a state aid scheme to support companies in sectors and sub-sectors exposed to a significant risk of relocation due to the transfer of the cost of greenhouse gas emissions in the price for electricity in the period 2021-2030, according to a press release of the Ministry.
"We are looking for solutions to continue the financial support we have given for the past two years to the large energy consumers. Especially in the current context, I think it is necessary to continue this state aid scheme. Through the memorandum approved today [Thursday - editor's note], the Ministry of Energy has been empowered to negotiate with the European Commission. Through the scheme meant for the energy-intensive industries we want to make sure that we provide the necessary conditions to the Romanian enterprises to remain competitive in Europe and in the world, we want to make sure that the final industrial consumer can bear the increase in the electricity prices, preventing thus the negative social effect that a limited industrial activity could have. Moreover, we want to keep the approximately 200,000 direct and indirect jobs, limiting unemployment and maintaining a highly skilled workforce in those industrial sectors," said Virgil Popescu, Minister of Energy.
The Ministry of Energy is empowered to initiate discussions and carry out prior consultation procedures with representatives of the European Commission - DG Competition, to establish the essential conditions for initiating and authorizing a state aid scheme for companies in sectors considered to be at real risk of relocation, due to the significant impact of the transfer of the costs of greenhouse gas emissions in the price of electricity, starting in 2022.
Between 2019 and 2021, a state aid scheme was implemented in Romania to support companies in sectors and sub-sectors exposed to a significant risk of relocation, as a result of the transfer of the cost of greenhouse gas emissions to the price of electricity, according with the provisions of the Government Emergency Ordinance no. 81/2019.
The total value of the state aid for 2019 was 399.4 million lei for a number of 34 enterprises, respectively 637.6 million lei, for a number of 33 enterprises in 2020.
