Romania's Government on Wednesday approved the ordinance providing state aid through green certificates for renewable energy production, after repeated complaints about delays from business associations in the industry.
The ordinance amends Law 220/2008 concerning the promotion of energy production from renewable energy sources.
Under this incentive scheme, investors earn money by selling the energy and by trading green certificates on the market, since energy suppliers are required to buy an annual quota. This form of support has been approved by the European Commission.
The incentive scheme will be applied between 2011 and 2021. The greatest impact will be felt in 2016-2017, when consumers may pay 30% more on their bills.
Earlier in October, the Romanian Wind Power Association (AREE) said the government had not yet approved the subsidies for renewable energy producers because it fears the impact on the electricity bills will be too high.
"The law will be discussed by the ruling coalition, but there are fears among politicians that the price impact would be of 8%. The Association estimates an impact of only 4.76%," said Ionel David, public affairs consultant with AREE.
According to estimates of the national energy regulator, Romanian consumers are likely to pay another EUR10 billion until 2020 to support renewable energy projects under the new green certificate scheme.