A new order by ANRE allows natural gas exports to the EU after the European Commission started infringement procedures against Romania in 2012, as the country failed to meet gas market requirements.
Romania is not able to export natural gas because of technical restrictions, as it has a single gas pipeline which connects it to Hungary and which currently allows only gas imports. Works on the pipeline connecting Romania to Hungary were finished in 2010. Two new pipelines running from Romania to Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova are under construction.
Romania has two large natural gas producers, namely, Romgaz Medias and OMV Petrom, which cover two thirds of the country’s gas consumption and the difference is imported mainly from Russia through intermediaries.