Romania risks penalties for methane-intensive hard coal production

Romania faces potential penalties under the EU Methane Regulation due to high methane intensity in its underground hard coal mines in the Jiu Valley. Despite state-owned mines exceeding EU emission limits, the country has shown a lack of transparency in reporting hard coal production and lacks projects for abandoned mine methane utilisation.

• Three of Romania's four active underground coal mines exceed the methane emissions limits established by the EU Methane Regulation approved on May 27, 2024. By 2027, the regulation will require a methane intensity of no more than 5 tonnes of methane per kilotonne of coal, whereas 2022 data shows the Jiu Valley active mines averaged 14.9 tonnes per kilotonne.
• Methane emissions from coal mining significantly increase the climate impact of hard coal burned at the Paroseni power station. In 2022, the plant emitted 333,429 tonnes of CO2e, but the associated mining methane emissions added an equivalent of 239,497 tonnes of CO2 (using 20-year GWP), increasing the climate impact by 72%.
• There is a discrepancy between Romania's official reporting to the EU and actual production. While Eurostat reported 0 hard coal production for Romania in 2022, the state-owned Jiu Valley Energy Complex (CEVJ) reportedly produced approximately 200,000 tonnes that year.
• Romania's methane capture efficiency in mines is low compared to potential. In 2019, the average degassing efficiency was only 25%, though the Vulcan mine was an exception at 81%. Increasing efficiency to 50% across all mines could increase usable methane from 447 to 1,310 tonnes per year.
• Romania has not implemented any Abandoned Mine Methane (AMM) projects despite having 173 closed underground mines recorded between 1935 and 2019. This contrasts with other European regions like North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, which used AMM in 107 combined heat and power plants in 2020.
• Despite a goal to end hard coal extraction by 2030, production at CEVJ mines increased from 500 to 700 tonnes in January 2024, with a stated aim to reach 2,000 tonnes per day by June 2024 to achieve net profit.

APA

Assan, D. S. (2024). Romania risks penalties for methane-intensive hard coal production. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Romania-risks-penalties-for-methane-intensive-hard-coal-production-3.pdf

Chicago

Assan, Dr Sabina. Romania risks penalties for methane-intensive hard coal production. Ember, 2024. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Romania-risks-penalties-for-methane-intensive-hard-coal-production-3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Assan |first1=Dr Sabina |title=Romania risks penalties for methane-intensive hard coal production |publisher=Ember |date=10 October 2024 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Romania-risks-penalties-for-methane-intensive-hard-coal-production-3.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{assan2024romania, author = {Assan, Dr Sabina}, title = {{Romania risks penalties for methane-intensive hard coal production}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2024}, month = oct, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/Romania-risks-penalties-for-methane-intensive-hard-coal-production-3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }