Restructuring events
European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
The restructuring events database contains factsheets with data on large-scale restructuring events reported in the principal national media and company websites in each EU Member State. This database was created in 2002.
The Ministry of Energy announced that it expects an increase in coal production in the mines in the Jiu Valley, which is why it will hire 320 more miners in the coming period to ensure four shifts at the Lonea and Lupeni mines. In recent years, the Paroseni thermal power plant has operated on a limited basis, two days a week, at great cost. The schedule was changed to five days of continuous operation when the Valea Jiului Energy Complex became operational. Thanks to recent efforts and optimisations, the plant can now operate for two consecutive weeks.
The Valea Jiu Energy Complex received state aid worth 70 million lei (approx. €14 million) for October and November, followed by 350 million lei (approx. €70 million) for the period December 2023 - June 2024 for coalmine safety activities, the upgrading of mining infrastructure and hiring. The long-term commissioning of a coal-fired power plant appears to be at odds with Romania's announced decarbonization plans in the context of the EU's Green Deal.
The Lonea and Lupeni mines should have been closed in 2018 due to problems related to the safety of the deposits. At the end of last year it was known that, the Lonea and Lupeni mines were due to close in 2024, following agreements with the European Commission. However, is seems that the Government decided to postpone the procedure to 2026.
Eurofound (2024), Complexul Energetic Valea Jiului, Business expansion in Romania, factsheet number 200749, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/restructuring-events/detail/200749.