The new methodology for calculating heating distribution costs proposed by the Ministry of Energy contains practically the same mistakes from the methodology that has been in force since October 2022, says the energy expert Sergiu Ungureanu.
One example, according to Ungureanu, is that no exact calculation is made of the heat flow that must be paid by the final consumer, regardless of whether they are connected or disconnected from the centralized system.y
In a press conference held together with the former lawmaker Arina Spătaru, the expert stated that the methodology proposed today is “practically copied word for word” from the previous iteration, which already “raised a lot of dissatisfaction” among consumers.
“There are situations where, for example, there is no technical floor or heated basement, but the methodology considers them implicitly. Another thing, also very important, losses through technical walls are not considered. Now, there are walls that have a certain thickness, there are walls that can be insulated, because many people have done this, but that is not taken into account. At the same time, many have undertaken other energy efficiency measures, replaced the windows for instance, and this, again, is not taken into account”, explains Sergiu Ungureanu.
According to him, the methodology does not define heated or unheated basement, or insulated and non-insulated pipes. “One of the big problems we observe in this methodology is the non-transparency, because for each block, each user must know very well all the data used in the calculations. It is not a transparency related to the total heated surface of a block. Many have made changes – they added balconies, lodges or additional buildings to the heated surface, increased the number of elements in the heating system. So, today, every citizen does not have access to know what is the heated surface of their neighbors or of whole block”, said the energy expert.
Sergiu Ungureanu added that the calculation formulas in the methodology were based on a study that did not pass all the prescribed stages. “The baseline data in this study is somehow included without being calculated accurately. Therefore, the resulting formulas also raise many questions from a technical point of view. There are many solutions to have a better methodology, including the need for individual counters, which today is possible”, the expert added.
