As local companies used 10.6% more energy, electricity consumption rose 8.5% in the first quarter of the year, data from the National Statistics Institute (INS) showed, according to a report published by Romania Insider. Public lightning was up 1.8%, while individual consumers used 2.4% more electricity.
Total production rose by 0.3% year on year, to 17.09 TWh. Thermal power plants covered 7.07 TWh, 0.3% more than in the same period of last year. Hydropower plants produced 4.59 TWh, a decline of 7.1%, while nuclear energy output stood at 3.04 TWh, up 1.4%. Wind turbines produced 13.6% more electricity, reaching 2.07 TWh, while photovoltaic installations saw the biggest increase in output – 22%, generating 324 GWh.
Romania had to import 38.8% more electricity on an annual basis – 1.2 TWh, while its electricity exports were down 20.6% at 2.06 TWh, INS data show.
The price of electricity production fell by a third during the past four years due to renewable energy, despite many criticisms against it, said Iulian Iancu, chairman of the Committee for Industries and Services of the Chamber of Deputies, Romania Journal reported.
“In June 2012, the price of electricity generation was somewhere around RON 270 (EUR 60) per MWh, and this year it was on average of about EUR 33. We are talking about a drop by one third in the price of energy production. Life has proven our projection was correct. When 100 MWh of renewable energy production enters the energy system, the price drops by EUR 1.5 per MWh,” Iancu said.
He pointed out that, on the other hand, the price paid by end users has increased by 10% during this period. Iancu also showed that in addition to the cost of production, the distribution tariff is added, transport and supply fees, while taxes and excise duties account for half of the final price.
