An ordinance draft that proposed limiting the commercial markup practiced on electricity and natural gas was mistakenly published on the Ministry of Energy’s website and later retracted after the error was identified, representatives of the institution stated.
The document briefly appearing on the ministry’s website proposed limiting the commercial markup applied in wholesale trading and supply activities of electricity and natural gas to final consumers.
Specifically, the markup was supposed to be capped at 3% for electricity and 5% for natural gas, for a period of 12 months.
The information quickly sparked reactions in the public space, given the high sensitivity regarding energy prices and consumer protection measures.
Official Explanation: "To avoid misinterpretations"
The Ministry of Energy, however, maintains that the publication of the project was the result of a material error and that the document was not supposed to be made public in this form.
"The Ministry of Energy has managed, over several months, an extensive process of analyzing multiple scenarios aimed at ensuring lower energy prices for all Romanians. These efforts were based on constant consultations with all relevant actors in the energy market and the integration of proposals received within an internal technical process.
The document temporarily posted on the website was published due to a material error. It was withdrawn immediately once the situation was identified to avoid misinterpretations," stated ministry representatives.
Officials did not specify if and when such a project could be resumed or put up for public consultation in a final form.