In brief

  • ANRE has approved a new trading regulation for the centralised natural gas markets operated by OPCOM, fully replacing the old 2021 regulation.
  • The regulation sets the rules for the day-ahead market, intraday market, medium- and long-term bilateral contract markets and the flexible products market, including tariffs, financial guarantees and how trading data is published.
  • It concerns exclusively businesses operating in the natural gas sector (suppliers, traders, the transmission operator) registered as OPCOM market participants; it has no direct impact on household gas bills.
Act: ANRE Order No. 52/2026
Published: Official Gazette of Romania (Monitorul Oficial) No. 644 of 5 August 2026
In force from: 5 August 2026

Romania’s energy regulator has entirely rewritten the rules for trading natural gas on the country’s centralised markets. Order No. 52/2026, published in Official Gazette of Romania No. 644 of 5 August 2026, approves the new Regulation on the organised trading framework for the centralised natural gas markets operated by the Romanian Electricity and Natural Gas Market Operator, OPCOM S.A. The regulation, with 41 articles across three chapters, replaces the one approved by ANRE Order No. 107/2021, which is expressly repealed as of the date the new act takes effect.

The text governs five distinct markets operated by OPCOM: the day-ahead market (PZU-GN), the intraday market (PI-GN), the multi-day delivery market (PMZ-GN), the centralised bilateral-contract markets for the medium and long term (via auction and negotiation, via public tender, or OTC-type) and the medium- and long-term flexible products market. Each market has its own rules for bidding, matching trades, settlement and guarantees.

What it changes in practice

Existing participants remain registered, but under the new rules. The regulation does not require mandatory re-registration of operators already active on OPCOM’s markets, but any transaction from 5 August 2026 onward is subject to the new text, including its new settlement deadlines and procedures.

Financial guarantees remain the condition for access to short-term markets. To submit purchase offers on the day-ahead, intraday or multi-day delivery markets, participants still need a direct-debit mandate agreement with a commercial bank and a bank payment guarantee letter in favour of OPCOM, submitted before the trading day.

Penalties for non-performance of contracts remain unchanged, at the same rates. On the bilateral-contract markets, refusing to sign the contract resulting from a trade triggers a 10% penalty on the transaction value, while withdrawing an initiating offer before the auction costs 5% of its value. The amounts are redistributed to the affected trading partners, and OPCOM keeps the penalty only if both parties involved simultaneously refuse to sign.

Market transparency remains mandatory, with periodic data publication. OPCOM must publish on its website the minimum, maximum and average prices, traded volumes and the number of active participants, at intervals that vary by market (for example, every two hours for the intraday market, at the end of the session for the day-ahead market).

What has changed compared with the previous situation

The basic structure of the centralised gas markets operated by OPCOM stays the same as before 2026: the same five markets, the same trade-matching mechanisms (continuous matching on the short-term markets and on PCGN-LN/OTC, auction-based matching on the day-ahead market and on the public-tender markets). What Order No. 52/2026 brings is a complete update of the regulation’s text, with reworded definitions, clarified roles for OPCOM and the transmission and system operator (Transgaz), and the consolidation into a single document of provisions that, under the old 2021 regulation, had been added gradually through separate operational procedures.

The most important element of continuity is the reference mechanism itself: the Virtual Trading Point (PVT), the single abstract nationwide location where ownership of traded gas is transferred, remains unchanged as the operating principle of Romania’s wholesale gas market.

Advantages and disadvantages

What it improves

  • A single, updated regulation, easier to consult than the 2021 text plus the subsequent additions scattered across separate OPCOM procedures.
  • It maintains a transparent, non-discriminatory trading framework, with periodic publication of prices and volumes, useful for every player in the wholesale gas market.
  • Continuity for existing participants: no need to re-register or sign new agreements just because the regulation was updated.

What remains a problem

  • A full update of a 41-article regulation forces market participants’ legal and compliance departments to review internal procedures, even though many provisions remain substantively unchanged.
  • The regulation remains a technical document, accessible mainly to energy-market specialists; household consumers have no direct way of understanding how it affects their final gas price.

Practical advice

  1. If you are an active participant on OPCOM’s natural gas markets: compare the new regulation with the internal operational procedures you were using and check whether the guarantee and settlement terms remain identical for the market you trade on.
  2. If you want to register as a new participant: submit a written request to OPCOM and sign the participation agreement corresponding to the market you target (short-term markets, medium- and long-term markets, or the flexible products market), according to the procedures published on OPCOM’s website.
  3. If you have a transaction being negotiated on a bilateral-contract market: keep the penalty terms in mind (10% for refusing to sign the contract, 5% for withdrawing an initiating offer) before deciding to withdraw.
  4. If you are a household consumer or SME with a gas bill: this regulation does not directly change your bill; it governs the wholesale market between suppliers and traders, not the contractual relationship between the supplier and the end consumer.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly does ANRE Order No. 52/2026 replace?
The regulation approved by this order fully replaces the one approved by ANRE Order No. 107/2021, which is expressly repealed as of the date the new act takes effect, i.e. 5 August 2026.
Do I need to re-register as a market participant?
No. Participants already registered on the centralised natural gas markets do not need to re-register just because the new regulation took effect; existing participation agreements remain valid.
Who can participate in these markets?
Businesses in the natural gas sector holding an ANRE licence, the transmission and system operator (Transgaz), distribution operators, storage operators, and, on the short- and medium/long-term markets, end customers who have obtained Transgaz’s prior agreement.
What happens if I refuse to sign the contract resulting from a transaction?
A penalty applies: 10% of the transaction value on most bilateral-contract markets, and OPCOM redistributes the amount to the affected trading partner within 5 working days of collection.
Does this order affect the gas price for household consumers?
Not directly. The regulation sets the rules of the wholesale market between licensed businesses; the final price billed to a household consumer depends on their contract with their supplier, not on the trading rules of OPCOM’s centralised markets.

Original text of the legal act

The text below is reproduced in Romanian, the official form of publication.

The full text, as published in the Official Gazette of Romania

Official Gazette of Romania no. 644 of 5 August 2026 16 pages PDF, 120 KB the act starts on page 7

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This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, consult a licensed attorney or tax advisor.