Former Prime Minister Mihai Tudose claims Romania will become dependent on Hungary’s electricity exports, because the government has wound down three coal mines in the Jiu Valley (Zsil völgye/Valea Jiului). The claim comes from the same person who made a veiled threat to hang members of the country’s Hungarian minority.
In a post published on his Facebook page, Tudose says the government’s decision will leave only one mine open to supply coal for the Paroseni-based fossil fuel power plant. He pointed to the government’s decision to allocate 50 million RON to close down the mines instead of investing in improving the technology used in those mines.
His main point, however, is that this decision leads Romania to dependency on Hungarian electricity, which caused him to lash out at the socialist party (PSD) and also the Hungarian government, especially Viktor Orbán, the Prime Minister of Hungary.
“Take off your hands of Romania! Urgently!” he wrote in his Facebook post.
Romania has years ago decided to take coal out of the country’s energy mix. The talks about closing down mines in the country’s oldest mining area, the Jiu Valley, aren’t new: the decision was announced in the spring of 2016. Currently, the county is shifting from coal and onshore fields to hydroelectricity and other forms of renewable energy.
Title image: former Prime Minister of Romania Mihai Tudose. Image source: Facebook
