The Romanian government has announced plans to introduce a special pricing regime for natural gas for households and district-heating producers (i.e., municipal heating systems) for at least one year after April 1, 2026—the date when the current price-protection mechanism is expected to be replaced by a different transitional solution. The plan was presented by Energy Minister Bogdan Ivan.
“Liberalisation,” but with a transitional period
According to government statements and media reports, full liberalisation of the gas market is to be pushed back to 2027, and the period from April 1, 2026 to the end of March 2027 would serve as a transition phase in which prices for certain groups would be managed/administratively set, rather than “frozen” under a classic price-cap model. Such a framework was publicly outlined by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, who indicated that the mechanism would cover the entire chain (from producers through distribution and retail sales) in the household segment.
Who would be protected, and who would move to market prices?
In practice, the announced “special regime” is expected to apply to:
- residential consumers (households), and
- entities producing heat for district-heating networks (particularly important in cities).
At the same time, the government’s messaging suggests that industrial consumers and parts of the business sector would operate more on market terms (without an administrative safety net), in order to limit the costs of the protection scheme.
Why is Romania doing this?
Two motivations appear most often in reporting:
- Avoiding a sudden “price shock” once the existing protective mechanism ends—Minister Ivan has spoken about phasing out protections in a way that prevents a sharp jump in bills, suggesting instead relatively small increases (on the order of a few percent).
- Reorganising the system after years of price intervention—media have pointed out that a new model is meant to replace solutions that generated financial strain and obligations within the system.
What’s next — what to watch in the coming weeks
The key issue will be the exact design of the mechanism: whether the price will be uniform, how it will be set, what the settlement rules will look like, and who will ultimately bear the costs (the budget, companies, or tariffs). It will also be worth watching whether the “special regime” is paired with additional support instruments for vulnerable consumers (for example, targeted relief applied directly on bills).
