The European Commission (EC) has urged Romania to fully transpose EU directives on offshore oil and gas safety into its national legislation.
As part of its September infringement package, the EC sent Romania one reasoned opinion and one letter of formal notice concerning pending issues in those areas that the country needs to address.
Romania should correctly transpose, implement and apply EU rules on safety of offshore oil and gas operations, ensuring that companies to which it grants a license for exploration or production are well financed and have the necessary technical expertise, and that they keep resources available to put them into operation when necessary. Also, an independent authority needs to be in place in order to ensure that safety requirements are respected, as well as an adequate system to handle compensation claims in case of accident. Romania now has two months to respond to this letter of formal notice. Otherwise, the Commission may decide.
