This project will extend and modernise the water and wastewater infrastructure in Satu Mare county
ensuring the country complies with obligations in the Accession Treaty and EU Directives for drinking water quality and wastewater treatment
The project will ensure compliance with Directive 98/83/CE on the quality of water intended for human consumption
It will increase connections to the water network
ensure that the water provided meets legal standards and reduce water losses
treatment plants and storage tanks to meet the county’s demand
pumping and transport facilities are either outdated or inefficient
the project will ensure compliance with Directive 91/271/CEE concerning urban wastewater treatment
wastewater pumping stations installed and wastewater treatment plants will be built or extended
there is insufficient network coverage and treatment capacity
The project covers Satu Mare and the following communes
The distribution network will be extended by 258.7 km
Water mains totaling 175.9 km will be either built
36 pumping stations and 17 storage tanks will be built
the project covers 15 agglomerations and towns: Satu Mare
A total of 448.20 km of sewerage network and 133 km of pressure pipes will be laid
Two wastewater treatment plants will be extended and three new ones built
along with 301 wastewater pumping stations
The project investment amounts to EUR 716 per capita for water supply infrastructure
and EUR 1 802 for wastewater infrastructure
Total investment for the project “Regional project for the development of water and wastewater infrastructure in Satu Mare county” is EUR 248 897 607 with the EU’s Cohesion Fund contributing EUR 165 450 961 through the “Large Infrastructure” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period
The investment falls under the priority “The development of environmental infrastructure based on an efficient management of resources”
Administratiei Publice si Fondurilor Europene
geography and a generous range of natural resources
Romania has been trying for years to position itself in the region as an energy leader
Romania has also had the opportunity to get a similar status in terms of agriculture or other fields
but these opportunities are either lost or so fragile that they become invisible
While in the electricity sector Romania is already a net exporter in the region
in the gas sector things are slightly different
Although it is the fourth largest gas producer in Europe
Romania cannot fully cover its own gas consumption
has also marked a reminder for what the power and importance of energy resources mean
A month before the delivery of the judgment of the International Court of Justice in The Hague
under which Romania took possession of 9,700 square kilometers of continental shelf in the Black Sea
the Russian Federation limited or even ceased gas exports to South-Eastern European states
Romania imports Russian natural gas through two points
Mediesu Aurit to the north and Isaccea to the south-east
Romania hasn’t suffered too much following Moscow’s decision in 2009
this thanks to the gas storage capacity of up to 3 billion cubic meters per year
Romania and Russia had been discussing for years
about the involvement in a partnership to build an underground gas storage facility
The capacity of that facility would have been huge
But nothing has materialized from all those discussions and this subject isn’t even on the agenda of those responsible for the development of the Romanian energy system
we have energy transmission and storage capacities
We also have centralized trading platforms
as they are in various stages of development
We have absolutely all the conditions and I think we should take this step and become a regional energy hub,” the Energy Minister Anton Anton stated in late June
Apart for the probable and confirmed national hydrocarbon reserves
according to statements of National Agency for Mineral Resources officials made early this year
it seems that Romania’s total reserves have recently increased by 40 billion cubic meters
according to information appeared from government sources claiming that OMV Petrom and Hunt Oil have discovered
the largest onshore gas field in the last decades
this figure hasn’t been confirmed by OMV Petrom or Hunt Oil
discovered by the state-owned company Romgaz
some enthusiasts might consider the energy future of the country (and not only) assured
It’s true that Romania has a history of 160 years of oil industry and an experience of over 100 years in the natural gas industry
But let’s not forget that most hydrocarbon fields in Romania are mature
having a duration of exploitation of over 25-30 years
But these figures don’t matter much until the respective resources are extracted and used
Another important part of a regional gas hub is represented by infrastructure
although insufficient even under the current conditions of consumption
things are not great when it comes to gas transmission pipelines
According to data provided last year by Transgaz
operator of the national gas transmission system
about 73% have an effective duration of operation higher than 20 years
when it comes to investments in upgrade and maintenance
Romanian energy companies are not doing very well
Romania’s dream to become a regional gas hub is getting close to reality
with several amendments… Romania has gas production
has a certain transmission and storage infrastructure
Some voices in the public space claim the lack of vision
The question “What will we do with the Black Sea gas?” is on the lips of many
should the state get involved in how Black Sea gas will be used or the market should be allowed to decide
in terms of gas production one cannot say that Romania holds the control either
as the Black Sea fields cannot be exploited by companies owned by the Romanian state
the decision to start gas extraction belongs to the titleholders – ExxonMobil
So does the modality of using these resources
The offshore law recently adopted by the Parliament forces titleholders to deliver 50% of production
in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner
only the gas storage sector is truly controlled by the state
the company that owns most gas storage facilities
each country in the region wants to become a ‘small gas hub’
Hungary has been working at this plan for a longer time and so does Bulgaria
Russia is in maximum rush with the construction of new interconnections with the allied states in the European Union
thus trying to strangle any competition in the region
said that gas to be supplied through the second line of Turkish Stream gas pipeline would reach the pipelines of Bulgaria
Serbia and Hungary in the first half of 2020
when the gas pipeline operates at the planned capacity
Turkish (Turk) Stream is the second pipeline that Gazprom is currently building to supply gas to Europe
as transit to Southern Europe is done through the pipelines crossing Dobrogea
the TurkStream project provides for the construction of two pipelines
each with a capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas per year
Shortly after the announcement of Gazprom head
Bulgaria announced that a branch of TurkStream would reach its territory
Energy ministers of Bulgaria and Serbia signed an agreement to implement the project of a gas interconnector between the two countries
the first to link the transmission systems of the two countries
will have a transfer capacity of up to 1.8 billion cubic meters of gas per year in Bulgaria-Serbia direction and only 0.15 billion cubic meters on the opposite direction
Serbia’s supply with Romanian gas has been discussed by government officials in Serbia and Romania
but it is unknown whether these discussions have advanced to a common denominator
Hungary has opted for a series of declarations considered at least informal
the CEO of FGSZ (Hungary’s gas transmission operator)
said Romania doesn’t have the capacity to use gas resources from the Black Sea
so the best solution is to export this gas to Hungary
These statements were doubled by others made in Washington by Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto
who accused Romania of violating the international commitments in terms of interconnection of gas pipelines and ensuring reverse gas flows
He also requested that pressure on Romania to start gas extraction in the Black Sea
No matter how bothered the Romanian politicians are by the statements of Hungarian politicians
the truth is that the situation of the petrochemical industry in Romania is critical
Although OMV (in Austria) and MOL (in Hungary) – companies carrying out operations in our country – have constantly developed this sector in their countries
things aren’t the same in Romania… Except for KMG International
which has small petrochemical operations at its refinery in Navodari
the Romanian petrochemical industry is almost nonexistent
Another sad reality: of the 14,000 localities in Romania
only 2,400 are connected to the gas distribution network
there’s no one to consume so much gas as it is estimated to be extracted from the Black Sea
It is true that the Ministry of Energy has put pressure for the legislation to be amended so that municipalities can grant the concession of the gas supply service
Probably years will have passed until we have 3,000 or 5,000 localities connected to the gas networks
This is the situation and the praise of the European Commissioner responsible for Climate Policies and Energy
who congratulated Romania for observing the deadlines in terms of BRUA construction and criticized Hungary for its statements regarding Romania
This is because the other states in the region do not show a particular interest in BRUA
The proof is that neither Bulgaria nor Hungary have done anything for the construction of this interconnector
Hungary unilaterally decided to stop BRUA on its territory
to no longer invest for interconnection with Austria
and redirect gas to other neighboring states
Hungary’s excuse is that it already has the necessary infrastructure
while Bulgaria’s objective is to strengthen its relations with Russia and Turkey
Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Energy Union
who made in early July a visit to Bucharest
that Romania now has a responsibility in terms of energy security for the whole Europe
The EU representative reminded that Romania can play a substantial role including due to Black Sea resources
and BRUA project is considered by the European Union a project of strategic importance
“There is a new and promising prospect of Black Sea gas extraction and I am glad that you work closely with us to ensure that the BRUA project and other interconnection pipelines will be built
to provide new opportunities for strengthening the internal energy market
especially in this part of Europe that has greatly depended on Russian gas for a long period,” the European official mentioned
The authorities in Romania repeat at the same time that Black Sea gas must be used to a great extent in Romania
There are statements according to which this gas will be able to determine the apparition of thermal power plants replacing the old ones of Hunedoara Energy Complex or that Romgaz
which is currently a gas and electricity producer
could also enter the petrochemical segment by taking over a closed chemical plant from businessman Ioan Niculae
without which titleholders of hydrocarbon fields in the Black Sea cannot start gas extraction
is still controversial and could suffer changes through Emergency Ordinance
It is yet uncertain what Romania will do with Black Sea gas and how it will use it to reach its objective to become a regional energy hub
The Energy Minister Anton Anton has even come up with the proposal that Romania
Bulgaria and Hungary create together a regional hub
but it is less likely that the two neighboring states would agree
Maybe the future National Energy Strategy will bring at least partially an answer to this question
we will include the chance for Romania to become a regional or even European energy force in the chapter of failures