Global environmental NGO Greenpeace saluted the fact that Romania adopted a new normative act on Thursday, November 6, creating the necessary legislative framework so that citizens, municipalities, NGOs, and small enterprises can jointly produce, manage, and consume renewable energy.
The framework was finally created “after nearly three years of waiting and requests from local authorities and civil society,” according to the organization.
“The act corrects the transposition gaps of EU Directive 2018/2001, which had left an incomplete and non-functional framework for local initiatives. The lack of clear definitions and procedures had blocked the formation of energy communities, leaving Romania among the last European states without a functional legal basis for citizen involvement in the energy transition,” the press release added.
The new framework will allow energy communities to install and manage renewable sources locally, share the produced energy, and keep economic benefits within the community. The legislation clarifies how these communities can be established and operated, sets rules for energy exchange between members, and provides a basis for the active participation of citizens, municipalities, and local enterprises in the energy transition.
“This will create jobs, increase social inclusion, and reduce energy poverty,” Greenpeace said.
Following the adoption of the normative act, Romania’s National Energy Regulatory Authority has to develop several norms and methodologies. The first step is adopting the procedure for establishing the Register of Energy Communities, which will allow their official registration and recognition.
“We call on ANRE to urgently develop the implementing rules that will make the law functional, and on the Ministry of Investments and European Projects to unblock the funds from the just transition, so that this legal framework can soon turn into real projects, namely clean energy produced and used together,” said Andrei Crăciun, campaign coordinator at Greenpeace Romania.
Back in February 2025, then-energy minister Sebastian Burduja signaled that the establishment of energy communities is a priority of the energy sector. He explained that these energy communities are based on open and voluntary participation. They are autonomous and effectively controlled by shareholders or members located near the renewable energy projects owned and developed by that community. Shareholders or members can be individuals, SMEs, or local authorities, including municipalities, according to Digi24.
The main goal is to provide environmental, economic, or social benefits for its shareholders or members or for the local areas in which it operates. According to the minister, the emergence of energy communities “will produce a small revolution,” because it will mean a significant reduction in energy costs for homeowners’ associations, public authorities, and economic agents who will become energy producers.
(Photo source: Nataliia Babinska | Dreamstime.com)
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