The Concordia Employers' Confederation is asking the government to develop a country plan for energy, built together with the business community, as well as to define a pro-competitiveness agenda amidst ongoing challenges in the energy sector and the need for fiscal consolidation.

According to a press statement from the organisation, Concordia met on Wednesday interim Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan as part of a new round of consultations on the situation of the Romanian economy.

'The discussion took place amidst a prolonged political crisis and an acute energy crisis, generated by the volatility of the markets and the hydrological challenges of late as Romania is, according to the latest assessments of the rating agencies, at the limit of the investment grade rating,' the release reads.

The Concordia delegation once again drew attention to the lack of predictability lingering in Romania and said that the prolongation of political deadlocks and legislative uncertainty risks affecting access to finance and further increasing the financing costs of the state and companies.

Energy is said to have been a central chapter of the discussion. Thus, Concordia asked the government for a medium and long-term country plan, built together with the relevant sectors of the economy, so that future episodes of drought or market volatility do not find Romania unprepared, because they will inevitably be repeated.

'In the current energy context, marked by market volatility and hydrological challenges, it is essential that public policy decisions are based on economic criteria and long-term strategic interest. The stability and competitiveness of the energy system can only be achieved through a coherent continuation of investments that modernise the infrastructure and capitalise on technological progress.'

The employers' association requested that, along with investments in production facilities, investments in networks, the development of storage capacities and the implementation of intelligent energy system management solutions should be prioritised.

'Hydrological challenges arise regularly. Public policy decisions must generate systemic solutions that address such situations and minimise the impact of similar events in the future. We can no longer manage drought or hydrological volatility as exceptions. It must become a working hypothesis in any medium and long-term energy strategy,' says Concordia.

The confederation also reiterated the need to continue fiscal consolidation and to send signals of budgetary discipline to the financial markets and rating agencies, in order to keep Romania out of the risk of downgrade below the investment grade threshold.

At the same time, the organisation suggests to develop, together with the government and Parliament, a pro-competitiveness agenda built around the main obstacles identified for companies.

'Competitiveness is affected by three major costs: the cost of labour, where real wages have increased by 100% in the last ten years, while productivity has increased by only 35%, the cost of energy, today one of the highest in the EU, too high for industry and services, cutting the cost and the increase in access to capital, difficult to access for investments.'

Concordia said it is willing to consolidate and build, together with all the stakeholders in the decision-making environment, such an agenda in the second half of the year. AGERPRES (RO - editing by: Nicoleta Banciulea; EN - writing by: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu)