The International Monetary Fund has asked Romania to discard regulated prices for the production of electricity and natural gas and to draw up a new calculation formula in this respect.

"They asked us to verify the prices again, to liberalize them and to present a new calculation formula this year," Economy Minister Ion Ariton said Tuesday after meeting the IMF delegation in Bucharest. Deregulating tariffs for electricity and natural gas do not necessarily lead to higher prices for household clients, the minister said.

In 2010, Romania's energy sector regulator ANRE said it will order a survey to analyze the impact of discarding regulated prices for electricity and natural gas. According to ANRE's regulations, all local power producers must sell electricity to households at prices established by the agency. Moreover, the agency sets production prices for gas producers OMV Petrom (SNP.RO) and Romgaz Medias.

An IMF delegation is in Bucharest until February 8, to evaluate Romania's compliance with the terms of a EUR 13 billion stand-by loan and to negotiate a follow-up, precautionary deal, after the current arrangement expires in May.

Mediafax