Romanian authorities started the distribution of the so-called "energy cards" meant to help people bear the increased costs of energy. The cards will first be distributed in six counties in the country, namely Alba, Arges, Teleorman, Bacau, Bihor, Ilfov, and the capital city.

362,000 energy cards were distributed on Wednesday, February 1, with another 132,000 cards are to be sent to five counties (Braila, Covasna, Giurgiu, Valcea, and Botosani) on Thursday, according to government data cited by G4Media.

"I call on all recipients of this heating aid to remain calm and to trust that they will receive these cards, as they are already identified in the recipient lists. Everyone will receive these cards, everyone will be able to use them according to the commitments we made to our recipients," minister of investments and European projects Marcel Bolos said in a press conference. He also said that all cards will be distributed by February 20. 

Bolos also noted that those who believe they have the right to receive an energy card, or feel they were unjustly removed from the list of recipients, can ask their local city hall to perform an investigation and clarify their housing situation so that they can receive the card.

"All those who receive confirmation of receipt should be careful to receive the card, and if there are situations where the card has not reached the recipient - and the recipients know that they are in a situation where they should receive this card - then they should call the call center 031.9966 to clarify their situation," he added.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Gov.ro)