The Ministry of Energy of Romania has launched a public consultation on the draft emergency ordinance for the national investment program “Green Energy,” aimed at supporting administrative-territorial units and operators in centralized heating systems. The program will be implemented from 2024 to 2030, with a total value of four billion lei (over 800 million euros), according to the Ministry’s statement.
The Minister of Energy, Sebastian Burduja, emphasized that local authorities in Romania need consistent financial support to provide safe and affordable green energy for citizens and to improve the quality of life in their communities. The “Green Energy” program aims to complement European funds and enable the financing of projects that promote energy efficiency and the modernization of heating and cooling systems in cities across the country.
The first component of the program, valued at 1.5 billion lei, is dedicated to cities selected under the European program “100 Smart and Climate-Neutral Cities by 2030.” The second component, valued at 2.5 billion lei, focuses on the construction and modernization of heating and cooling systems in urban areas throughout Romania.
The Ministry of Energy has assessed that “Green Energy” is a significant step in Romania’s transition to a sustainable energy system, positioning the country on a decisive path toward energy transition, making it a leader in the region. The program will be financed through the issuance of green bonds by the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of European Investments and Projects.
The Ministry of Energy has invited all interested parties to participate in public consultations to further improve the program.
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Is Romania Introducing Hydrogen Heating?
In its efforts to decarbonize the heating sector, the 20HyGrid pilot project was introduced in the first quarter of this year, which will use a mixture of 20 percent hydrogen and 80 percent natural gas for heating households in Romania.
Testing in both laboratory conditions and the field has shown that the existing gas infrastructure is suitable for supplying homes with the hydrogen-natural gas mixture without any additional modifications.
In March of this year, Delgaz Grid delivered the final conclusions of this project to representatives of the Ministry of Energy, indicating that emissions of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and other harmful gases were significantly reduced compared to 100 percent natural gas.
“The results of the pilot projects are encouraging and offer us very good prospects for achieving the goals Romania has committed to under the European Union’s energy and climate policy. Through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Ministry of Energy is currently finalizing the strategic and legislative framework to facilitate investments in the production and use of green hydrogen,” Burduja said.
