Interim Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan proposed on Friday, at a Government press conference, concluding a political pact, an agreement to remain in force for the coming years, to implement measures in the energy sector.

'In the energy sector, apart from responding to crises, which is what we are doing at this time, things are solved through stable long-term policies, serious investment projects and, generally, through a predictable and responsible approach. What is happening in the energy sector at this time, as I have noticed throughout this period of my term as prime minister, is the result of the lack of a strategy in this area in previous years, the lack of investment, the evasion of responsibility, neglect, if I may put it that way, in many areas, and staffing policies that did not promote competence and results. To correct these things, measures are needed that I have already highlighted in my interventions from this podium, but I will go over them once again. For them to become reality, a political pact, a political agreement, is needed, which should be maintained for at least several years, so that we can see serious results,' Bolojan said.

In the prime minister's view, this political pact should be discussed at the beginning of the autumn parliamentary session, in order to adopt certain legislative measures.

'These are some basic elements which, if we have the wisdom to support them consistently in the coming years, starting next year the situation in the energy system will improve substantially, because new generation capacities will come into operation, because we will reduce imbalances by increasing storage capacities, through both public and private investment. Through better management of the major companies in the energy system, we will have greater performance in the system. These are the basic elements of an energy pact, which I believe we should discuss seriously this autumn, after the parliamentary session resumes, and wherever legislative amendments are needed, it is less important who proposes them or who claims authorship of them; what matters is that we put them into practice, that we have predictability in the coming years, good rules and efficiency in the system, and then we will truly have energy without crises and the best possible price for consumers and companies,' Bolojan added.

Also at the press conference, the head of the Executive explained that the Rovinari coal-fired power plant would come into operation starting next week, to cover the energy deficit arising after the disconnection of Cernavoda Unit 2.

'Against the backdrop of falling Danube flows, Cernavoda Unit 2 was also taken offline yesterday. Therefore, the 600 megawatts we are losing from generation capacity will have to be replaced. Together with the National Energy Dispatch Centre, we have taken measures to ensure the energy system operates normally under crisis conditions, with this additional deficit to be covered by photovoltaic and wind generation, by bringing the Rovinari unit currently in reserve into operation starting next week, which will cover almost half of this deficit, by imports and by additional generation from Romania's hydropower plants operated by Hidroelectrica. Based on all the data we have, the system has no operating problems. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to these efforts, including Romanians who have moderated their electricity consumption in the evening and everyone who, through the storage systems they operate, has injected significant amounts of electricity during hours of higher consumption,' the prime minister said.

The prime minister also provided details about the Bala 2 project to increase water flow towards the Cernavoda nuclear power plant.

'An important element concerns nuclear generation. We are seeing what it means not to have sufficient water flow at Cernavoda to ensure the cooling of the plant. Keeping the Cernavoda plant in operation and developing Units 3 and 4 is a strategic direction, but to achieve this we need to implement the project whose feasibility study was completed eight years ago, which has all the necessary approvals, including environmental approvals, and whose technical-economic indicators were approved in 2024. Among other objectives, the project seeks to increase the flow on the Old Danube towards Cernavoda, so that the current flow is almost doubled, ensuring not only the amount of water needed for Units 1 and 2, but also for Units 3 and 4. We cannot talk about Units 3 and 4 if this work is not carried out,' the head of the Executive explained.

In this context, Bolojan noted that the first meeting of an inter-ministerial committee made up of experts from all the authorities involved had taken place on Friday morning, with the main aim of reviewing the project once again.

The prime minister also said that another priority in the energy sector was completing investments in the power plants at Iernut and Mintia.

'We have agreed with Romgaz's directors that, by the end of this year, the Iernut plant will feed its first amounts of electricity into the National Energy System, while the privately owned Mintia plant has a schedule for entering the testing phase in the coming period, starting in September, gradually, as agreed with the two major suppliers: Transgaz, which supplies the gas, and Transelectrica, which ensures the delivery of electricity from the plant to consumers. The two plants have significant capacity, which in normal operation will exceed 1,500 megawatts and will effectively account for 20%, more than 20%, of the electricity required by the National Energy System. All projects involving gas-fired power plants must also be supported, so that during the evening hours, when electricity is needed, we have producers that can come online, as well as during the cold winter period, when their support is vital,' Bolojan stressed. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Eusebi Manolache; EN - writing by: Simona Iacob)