Implications of coal disappearance from the energy mix in Romania

Abstract

The firm commitment of the European Union (EU) to fully implement the 2030 Agenda requires the Member States to find and implement solutions to meet global targets, including ensuring clean and affordable energy. The EU encourages the elimination of coal from the energy mix in order to quantitatively reduce emissions and the impact on the environment and human health. Romania attaches great importance to the 2030 Agenda and understands that developing the national economy, increasing the quality of life, and caring for the environment are inextricably linked to the development and modernization of the energy system, for which the National Energy Strategy 2019-2030 was developed. According to it, in the perspective of 2050, Romania will be based on a diversified, balanced, and modern energy mix through clean technologies. But what if coal would disappear from the energy mix? The causes of the disappearance of coal from the energy mix could be represented by global or national policies or the depletion of known exploitable reserves, the latter being a less probable variant. In this paper, we aim to highlight and analyze some scenarios related to the possibilities of replacing coal in the energy mix, which would change the perspectives.