Miners embark on 320-km protest march from Targu Jiu to Bucharest

60 members of the National Quarry and Energy trade union federation have embarked on a 320-km protest march from Targu Jiu to Bucharest to express their dissatisfaction with the situation at the Oltenia Energy Complex and the country’s energy system.

“The 320-km march of miners and energy workers from the Oltenia Energy Complex that starts in Targu Jiu to end in Bucharest City via Craiova — Slatina — Pitesti is the outcome of the avalanches to destroy Romania’s last energy barricade, to sell the country to some foreign interests and also of the political class’ betrayal of the national energy system. Closure of the Oltenia Energy Complex would be tantamount to destroying the Romanian Academy or the extinction of our history and language in Romanian schools. Endangering Romania’s energy independence can be seen as undermining the state economy, with unimaginable and unrecoverable catastrophic consequences. We will rewrite the destiny of the Oltenia Energy Complex,” Chairman of the National Quarry and Energy trade union federation Dumitru Pirvulescu told a press statement.

Pirvulescu slammed the ‘smart guys’ involvement in the domestic energy sector. “We, the producers of energy based on lignite, take the lignite out, process it, transport it and turn into energy, then placed in in the network and we take 17 bani/ kilowatt-hour and people pay 60 bani at home, so 70% of the paid price is going to the smart guys’ pocket (…) It’s not possible that some smart guys are taking so much money, while we, the classic producers, to sell with lower and lower prices and head to insolvency,” the trade union leader added.

He said the protesters would stop in front of the Government HQs.

In Mid-March the Oltenia Energy Complex (CEO) decided to reduce or even halt the activity at each of its branches/subunits in the energy as well as mining sectors throughout June, which entails lay-offs of 670 employees of its two Craiova branches SE Craiova II and SE Isalnita.

CEO was saying the decision came as a result of falling demand for coal-based energy.

The Oltenia Energy Complex reported losses of RON 895 million last year, up 30 percent from its 2014 net losses of RON 693 million.