The head of Transgaz wrote to the European Commission: he requests financing for the construction of gas transmission pipelines from the Modernization Fund
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Ion Sterian, the director of Transgaz, sent a letter to the European Commission requesting a review of the community policy, so that projects aimed at consolidating the natural gas transport infrastructure can obtain financing from the Modernization Fund.
The Transgaz boss says that this change is necessary given the current geopolitical situation and the need to ensure Europe’s energy security. His request comes in the context of Brussels having just drawn up a plan for the EU to stop buying Russian gas by the end of 2027.
Here is the text of the letter sent by Transgaz CEO Ion Sterian to the European Commission’s DG Climate Director Kurt Vandenberghe and the European Investment Bank (EIB) Vice-President Ioannis Tsakiris:
“As you know, the whole of Europe is facing extreme challenges in terms of managing the current energy crisis and ensuring a sustainable and affordable energy supply for households and industry.
The complex circumstances show that:
– the war in Ukraine has redefined the European energy map and its priorities, including the elimination of fossil fuel imports from Russia;
– energy security is no longer just a technical ambition, but has become a pillar of national security, economic development and democratic stability;
– energy security involves bridges – interconnections, common infrastructure, market integration and collective defence against energy constraints;
– a sharp increase in energy prices was observed in 2022 and 2023 following Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine;
– applications submitted for funding through the Modernisation Fund (Annex 5 to Chapter 7) require the investment to be justified also from the perspective of ensuring energy security, in addition to the environmental component, whereby each of the non-priority investments must demonstrate that it is in line with the objectives of the ETS Directive, as well as with the objectives of the Commission Communication of 11 December 2019 on the European Green Deal and Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 and the long-term objectives set out in the Paris Agreement.
In these circumstances, it is time to identify all resources that could contribute to the common energy security objectives. Energy security and decarbonisation must be linked and coordinated to effectively address the diversification of supply sources and independence from energy imports.
Romania has made a major commitment to gradually eliminate coal from its energy mix, but in the transition from coal to renewables and cleaner technologies, we rely on natural gas as a transitional fuel, due to its lower emissions compared to other fossil fuels.
In the current geopolitical context, it is vital that projects aimed at strengthening natural gas transport infrastructure can obtain financing from non-reimbursable sources from the Modernisation Fund.
Although initially conceived as an instrument for financing measures related to the modernisation of industries in Central and Eastern European countries, focused on energy efficiency and climate components, the European Commission has recently sent, with the introduction of Chapter (VII) on energy security, a clear signal to broaden the financing approach to address current geopolitical challenges.
The exacerbation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the fact that Romania is on the verge of war make it necessary to take pragmatic and immediate measures to ensure energy security and connect Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, through Romania, to the whole of Europe. One of the measures that we consider necessary to accelerate the pace of interconnection and development of natural gas transmission networks is the allocation of funds for the energy security component. Only through such pragmatic and active measures can we ensure socio-economic stability at the European level, strengthen the Eastern flank of the European Union and directly support Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. The Natural Gas Transmission System Operator SNTGN Transgaz SA plans development projects focused on decarbonization, while maintaining a crucial element of ensuring energy security for the Eastern European region and for the whole of Europe.
Given that the investment financing mechanism of the Modernisation Fund currently takes into account only the environmental component in relation to the level of greenhouse gas emission reduction, we consider it necessary to quantify the energy security component already established in the Modernisation Fund Financing Requests and allocate the appropriate financial resources, given the importance given to it by the inclusion of Chapter 7 on energy security.
We express our firm belief that through support, unity and solidarity we can overcome the acute challenges of the current context and show our willingness to collaborate to identify the best solutions to ensure European energy security.
