USR's Dan: President Iohannis should return off-shore drilling law to Parliament for real debate

National leader of the Save Romania Union (USR) Nicusor Dan is urging President Klaus Iohannis to return to Parliament the off-shore drilling law to increase Romania's share of the Black Sea gas exploitation, arguing that the piece of legislation passed without a real debate, without impact studies or reckonings. 

"The off-shore drilling law passed through Parliament without a real debate, without impact studies and without concrete reckonings showing how much Romania gains from the exploitation of the Black Sea natural gas. All the calculations made so far are based on price estimates, labour costs, calorific quantity and value made by companies with vested interests in the exploitation of the Black Sea gas. We need a study by the Romanian government that includes an estimation of the Black Sea reserves, the cost of exploitation, and labour costs. Without such there are no serious negotiations with the companies," Dan told a news conference on Wednesday. 

He believes that a study on the taxation regime in other countries should also be carried out. 

"I am urging President Klaus Iohannis to return the law so that Parliament may increase the percentage of Romania's gains and a debate may be had that we did not have in Parliament at the time of the vote. The stake is important: it is billions of euros belonging to Romania," said Dan. 

He said the law as voted in Parliament would divide the earnings between the government and companies by about 50-50 percent, although there are countries earning between 60-80 percent. 

"For example, in Norway the government earns 78 percent of the profit, and in the UK 59 percent of the profit. I do not think the Romanian state is so rich as to afford being generous with the companies that want to exploit the Black Sea gas. This is why, I repeat, there is a need for a serious study, commissioned by the Romanian government to show how other countries tax natural gas revenues. In this respect, I am urging President Klaus Iohannis to return the off-shore drilling law to Parliament for a knowledgeable decision based on solid studies and assessments, instead of on political orders from the party," added Dan. 

He presented some personal calculations regarding the estimated earnings for the Romanian government under the off-shore drilling law voted in Parliament, mentioning that data show that Romania's profit would be just 50 percent and, depending on further developments, maybe even lower. "For this data set, we have asked the Law Department of the Chamber of Deputies to make a comparative study of laws in the UK, Norway, Israel, the Netherlands, and New Zealand," said Dan. 

On July 9, the Chamber of Deputies passed a bill on measures necessary for the implementation of oil operations by owners of off-shore oil blocks. On July 24, Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea said the government may issue an offshore drilling law ordinance defining unequivocally the value of investments and how to deduct them.