The distribution arms of the four electric utilities operating in Romania said they have invested over EUR 2 billion (RON 9.7 bln) in infrastructure between 2008-2014.
In a common statement issued by the Association of Energy Utility Companies (ACUE), the firms underlined the fact that the current pace of investments has to be maintained in the future.
The companies have reacted after a report by Romania’s Court of Accounts said that the utilities did not invest enough in the grid, leading to losses of around EUR 2 billion in the 2010-2014 period.
The public sector auditors said that electricity consumers were the ones who paid for the losses through higher tariffs.
“This report represent an opportunity for the clarification of the regulation principles of the distribution service, which are similar across the European Union. The operators from Europe have strict investment and maintenance obligations, to reduce costs and make the operations more efficient, in order to improve the quality of this service, and Romania is not a different case, with the results being officially certified. For instance, interruptions in the supply of electricity were reduced by half in the period analyzed by the Competition Council,” said the association, whose six members provide electricity and natural gas services in the country.
The electric utilities are CEZ, Enel, Electrica and E.ON.
Ovidiu Posirca