Too Much Money in the State Account: Romania Could Transfer Energy Profits to Ukraine

Romania is considering the possibility of directing part of the profits of energy companies to the restoration of the energy infrastructure of Ukraine.

This is the conclusion of the Minister of Energy of Ukraine, Herman Galushchenko and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania, Luminita Odobescu, within the framework of the Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine in London. The parties discussed measures to strengthen energy security in the region and assistance to the Ukrainian energy sector in the restoration and reconstruction of infrastructure facilities destroyed due to Russian attacks. This is communicated on the Telegram channel of the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy.

According to the Telegram post, at the meeting, the ministers paid particular attention to the call of the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine to foreign partners to share the additional profits that energy companies received as a result of the war in Ukraine unleashed by Russia, which led to significant price jumps on the energy markets, and as a result, unplanned incomes of their players.

In response to this appeal, the former Minister of Energy of Romania, Virgil Popescu, informed the Ukrainian side about the readiness of his Romanian colleagues to consider this initiative. No such communication was made by the current Minister of Energy in Romania, Mr. Sebastian Burduja. Also, no public communication has been made so far on this subject by any Romanian official.

According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy, during the meeting in London, Herman Galushchenko and Luminita Odobescu discussed the ways and directions of implementing the respective intentions. This means the Romanian Government has decided, but the general public was kept in the dark.

A recent survey shows that 1 in 3 Romanians do not agree with their country helping Ukraine financially, and 1 in 4 disagree with the humanitarian aid or even receiving refugees in their country. It might not seem to hinder the Romanian Government from sharing the energy companies’ profit with Ukraine. Still, Romania is the last country in the most recent poll measuring the willingness of the European people to help Ukraine.

For those wondering why not all Romanians want their country to help Ukraine, we recommend they read the story of the wealthy Ukrainian refugees in Romania.