Romania’s biggest natural gas supplier Engie will hike prices to households by 25% starting from July 1 after gas prices were liberalized last year.
Engie which is the largest gas supplier to households has started sending customers notices of new offers, as the old contracts expire at the end of June.
For those who do not change the contract or the supplier, the gas price increases by 25%, from July 1, according to Economica.net.
On 1 July 2020, state-regulated prices disappeared were scrapped. Customers can choose another gas supplier or request a better offer from Engie.
So far, only 28% of domestic gas customers have switched contracts, the energy regulatory body, ANRE said. Customers have until June 30 to change their contracts.
Engie has sent notifications to customers saying they can opt out of the current contract or choose another company. Engie has about 1.9 million customers.
Romania became the second-largest gas producer in the European Union after Britain left the bloc. Romania has natural gas reserves of 100 billion cubic meters, of which three-fourths are in the Transylvania region.
There are estimated to be up reserves of up to 200 billion cubic meters in the Black Sea.
Romania has an estimated 3.4 million household customers.
Engie customers currently pay about 124 lei for MWH without sales tax. That will increase to 155 lei plus tax from July 1.
Engie is offering customers another option for people who want gas but not their other services. The Engie Gas 4U offers a 20% discount on gas prices for six month of a year, excluding distribution and transportation tariffs.
The third option is choosing another supplier which is approved by ANRE. In the capital, there are 20 offers that are cheaper than Engie.
