Energy #11 Legislative focus

GEO 38/2026 continues to develop on two parallel tracks with the constitutional dispute around the ordinance and the parliamentary approval procedure in the Senate.

Compared with last week, the file has advanced procedurally. Several Senate advisory committees, including the Legal Committee, the Environment Committee and the Public Administration Committee, issued favourable opinions with proposed amendments on the draft law approving the ordinance.

The relevant point is the content of these proposed amendments. The advisory committees proposed the removal of articles III-XIV from GEO 38/2026. These articles correspond to the block of provisions introduced beyond the initial SAFE-related framework, including measures with relevance for energy, gas, PNRR implementation and other sectors.

However, these advisory opinions do not yet change the draft law and do not affect the ordinance currently in force. For the proposed deletions to matter procedurally, they need to be taken over by the lead committees responsible for the joint report before the Senate plenary vote.

The file therefore remains politically and constitutionally exposed. The dispute continues to raise questions about the scope of emergency law-making during political transition, the use of a SAFE-related ordinance to introduce wider multisectoral changes and the durability of measures already in force.

For companies, the main issue remains legal predictability.

GEO 38/2026 includes provisions with direct relevance for the energy sector, including the possible suspension of payments under energy and gas compensation schemes where irregularities, inconsistencies or risks to the state budget are identified. It also includes provisions linked to gas infrastructure and PNRR implementation.

The Senate advisory committee opinions indicate that Parliament may try to separate the initial SAFE component from the additional provisions introduced around it. This matters because the energy and gas provisions could be removed during the approval process even before the Constitutional Court fully clarifies the dispute.

For energy suppliers and other entities involved in compensation schemes, the immediate exposure concerns payment suspension risk and administrative verification. For gas infrastructure stakeholders, the relevant question is whether the provisions introduced beyond the SAFE component survive parliamentary scrutiny.

At this stage, the ordinance remains in force. The risk is not that the provisions have already been removed, but that companies may need to operate under rules whose legal durability is uncertain.

The Ministry of Energy has published draft implementing rules for Law 237/2023 on the integration of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen in industry and transport.

The timing is relevant. The norms appear almost three years after Law 237/2023 entered into force, meaning that a general legal framework is now being translated into reporting, verification and sanctioning rules.

The draft government decision targets two main categories: fuel suppliers active in transport and industrial hydrogen consumers. Fuel suppliers would report annually to the Ministry of Energy and ANRE on fuels supplied and the achieved share of renewable fuels of non-biological origin, with the first reporting year set for 2027.

Industrial hydrogen consumers would submit reports to the Ministry of Energy and ANRE by 30 June 2027 and then every two years. These reports would include information on hydrogen consumption, origin, procurement or production strategy, transition costs, investment planning and identified risks.

Compliance with quotas may be demonstrated through renewable hydrogen supply certificates issued by ANRE, guarantees of origin or, exceptionally, alternative supporting documents proving the origin of the energy used, emissions reduction and traceability of the fuels or hydrogen consumed.

ANRE would verify compliance documents and apply sanctions where reporting obligations or minimum quotas are not met.

For fuel suppliers and industrial users, the draft rules create the administrative layer through which hydrogen obligations become enforceable.

This matters because compliance will depend on documentation, traceability and the ability to prove the origin and emissions profile of fuels or hydrogen used. The rules do not only create a reporting form. They set the basic compliance architecture for how hydrogen-related obligations will be monitored.

For industrial consumers, the reporting obligation goes beyond simple consumption data. Companies would need to provide information on procurement or production strategy, investment planning, transition costs and risks. This creates a broader compliance file around hydrogen use, linking operational data with strategic planning and cost exposure.

For fuel suppliers, the annual reporting mechanism formalises the route through which renewable fuels of non-biological origin quotas will be monitored. Even if first reporting is expected in 2027, the underlying data, contract structures and traceability systems will need to be prepared earlier.

The PNRR link also matters. The draft contributes to the implementation of Component C6, Reform 4, milestone 126, concerning the legislative framework required for the development of the hydrogen sector.

The Ministry of Energy has published the draft order approving the state aid scheme and applicant guide for stand-alone battery storage projects financed through the Modernisation Fund.

The publication follows the March announcement that Romania had obtained European Commission approval for a EUR 150 million support measure targeting at least 2,174 MWh of new storage capacity. At that stage, the measure was mainly known through the public announcement of the approved support envelope. The new draft guide now translates that announcement into a project-level framework for investors.

The publication also came in the same week as the draft applicant guide for Modernisation Fund financing under Programme 8.1, supporting investments in bioethanol production. Taken together, the two draft guides indicate that the Ministry of Energy is advancing implementation rules for several funding lines linked to alternative fuels, system flexibility and the wider decarbonisation of the energy and transport sectors.

The scheme applies to new stand-alone battery storage installations connected to transmission or distribution networks. Support may cover up to 100% of eligible costs, within a ceiling of EUR 69,000/MWh of installed storage capacity and EUR 15 million per undertaking, regardless of the number of projects submitted.

Projects must have at least 1 MW installed power and a minimum 2:1 ratio between storage capacity and installed power, meaning that the installation must be able to operate at installed power for at least two hours. Combined renewable generation and storage projects are excluded.

Funding will be awarded through a competitive procedure based on the amount of state aid requested per MWh of installed storage capacity. Applications will be submitted through MySMIS 2021 after the Ministry of Energy publishes the call launch announcement. Projects must be completed and commissioned within 48 months from the date on which the aid is granted.

For investors, this is the point where the funding opportunity becomes assessable.

The draft rules clarify who can apply, what kind of projects qualify and what technical and financial conditions must be met before funding can be accessed. This is particularly relevant because the support measure has generated strong market interest since March, but investors still needed the applicant guide to evaluate eligibility and project structuring.

The measure is also relevant beyond individual project financing. Stand-alone storage is linked to renewable integration, balancing pressure and the ability of the system to manage production peaks and evening demand. Its practical effect will depend on the quality of submitted projects, the availability of grid connection documentation and the timing of the final call.

The exclusion of combined renewable generation and storage projects should be watched closely. The scheme is designed around autonomous storage assets, which means that investors with hybrid renewable-plus-storage concepts will need to assess whether their projects can be structured separately or whether they fall outside the current funding scope.