“Winston Churchill said success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm. His saying may very well apply in our case,” Valentin Mircea said at the Mediafax Talks about Energy conference.
Mircea said the government should set up a dedicated ministry that would draft clear, coherent and durable policies in the energy field.
Romania has been trying to overhaul its energy sector for several years now. Initial plans envisaged the creation of a national champion that would have grouped all major players in the field, but the project was abandoned due to opposition from both companies and trade unions.
A second project included two national champions, but the idea was also abandoned and replaced with a third proposal to set up two smaller energy holdings that should be privatized in 2012.
The first holding, Complexul Energetic Oltenia, will be created through the merger of mining company Societatea Nationala a Lignitului Oltenia and energy producers Turceni, Craiova and Rovinari.
Similarly, Complexul Energetic Hunedoara will include thermal power companies Paroseni and Mintia and four of the seven units operated by the mining company Compania Nationala a Huilei (CNH).
According to Economy Ministry estimates, Complexul Energetic Oltenia is likely to generate around EUR1 billion in annual revenue.