BUCHAREST (Romania), September 8 (SeeNews) – Romania’s Economy Minister Adriean Videanu said the country is close to sealing an agreement with Hungary and Austria to set up a regional energy market and holds talks with Greece and Bulgaria on the issue, Bucharest-based news agency Mediafax reported on Tuesday.
"We are very close to signing with Hungary and Austria the agreement to set up a regional energy market," Mediafax (www.mediafax.ro) quoted Videanu as saying. He said in July that the agreement might be sealed in early September.
Setting up a regional energy market is part of Romania’s strategy to reshuffle its energy sector. The strategy also takes into account the establishment of two companies that will incorporate most of the country’s power generation assets.
"In 2018, the market share of the two national companies would be a reasonable one, while the presence of the private sector should lead to a real competition in the energy market," Mediafax quoted Videanu as saying.
The first of the two new companies will comprise the Turceni, Rovinari and Craiova power generation complexes, the two reactors of the country's sole nuclear power plant Cernavoda, brown coal mining company Oltenia, half of energy distributor Electrica and two hydro power stations operated by Hidroelectrica - Valcea and Slatina, Mediafax reported.
The second megastructure will incorporate the assets of power producer Electrocentrale Bucuresti, thermal power plants Deva and Paroseni, hard coal company CNH, the other half of Electrica, more than five hydropower plants, as well as gas producer Romgaz.
According to Videanu, the energy sector might be a big opportunity for Romania, but it is also a vulnerability, if the country fails to make the investments necessary to ensure a higher efficiency of power production, Mediafax reported.