The Minister of Investments and European Projects, Dragoș Pîslaru, announced that he managed to recover 350.7 million euros from the money that was initially suspended from the PNNR, but he lost 458.7 million due to delayed reforms. The decision is final, he said.
Minister of European Investments and Projects, Dragoș Pîslaru PHOTO gov.ro
“Yesterday evening, we received the European Commission’s evaluation regarding Payment Request No. 3 from the PNRR. It is one of the most difficult payment requests that Romania has had so far. This request was submitted by Romania on December 15, 2023. The reforms included in CP3 should already have been correctly fulfilled at the time of submission”the minister said on his Facebook page.
He recalled that, in May 2025, the European Commission decided to partially suspend some amounts, because “several reforms had not been carried out satisfactorily”. According to him, Romania then had a correction period and submitted additional justifications on November 28, 2025, but the Commission decided that four important milestones were not properly resolved.
“Since June 23, when I took over the mandate of Minister of European Funds, we have used all the formal and informal levers to recover as much as possible of the suspended money: technical discussions, clarifications, negotiations, coordination with the responsible institutions and constant dialogue with the structures of the European Commission. It was a sustained effort, carried out together with the technical experts from the ministry, thanks to which we managed to recover 350.7 million Euros, money that was initially suspended”the minister added.
Victories achieved
Dragos Pîslaru he also stated that the most important victory in CP3 is on the subject of special pensions. Here, from the 231 million Euros initially suspended, Romania recovers 166 million Euros.
“It was a difficult file, which endured 6 postponements at the Constitutional Court, which made the deadline agreed with the Commission to be far exceeded. The direct involvement of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan on this subject was decisive. Thus, the European Commission confirmed that, through Law No. 24/2026, Romania meets the requirements for this milestone”he relayed.
According to the minister, the second important file is AMEPIP and the governance of state companies: “We are talking about the institution that must ensure that state companies are managed professionally, transparently and based on performance criteria, not on piles or political interests. Here we managed to recover 132 million Euros, and the contribution of Deputy Prime Minister Oana Gheorghiu was essential to dynamize this reform and to save European money.”
“The third milestone is the one concerning the state energy companies. We are talking about large companies, important for Romania’s economy: Hidroelectrica, Romgaz, Nuclearelectrica and others. The European Commission found serious problems in the way people were selected and appointed to the boards of directors: political appointments, unclear procedures, incorrectly applied criteria, incomplete mandates or lack of performance indicators. For this milestone, Romania loses 180 million Euros and recovers 48 million Euros”the minister also specified.
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In the case of the milestone regarding the state transport companies, such as CNAIR, CNIR, CFR, Metrorex and CFR Călători, Romania recovers 4.5 million euros from the initially suspended money, but loses 15.4 million euros.
“Where there was political will, as was the case with special pensions, Romania recovered a large part of the allocated money. However, where reforms were postponed years in a row, especially in the area of state companies, Romania lost substantial amounts. You can’t claim European funds and, at the same time, keep appointing the smart guys from the party to the management of state-owned companies. You cannot ask for trust from Brussels, while you, in Bucharest, only imitate the selection based on professionalism criteria”added Dragoș Pîslaru.
The payment note, “paid” by the Romanians
The Minister of Investments claimed that each “politician who used every opportunity to postpone or cancel any attempt at real reform, for fear of losing his privileges” is liable for the loss of these amounts.
“Every politician who appointed their mistresses, brothers and nephews to the management of state companies. Not professional and honest people. Every politician who considered the state budget as a chance for personal enrichment. Not as a debt to the Romanians. Every politician who chooses to block the modernization of Romania through a motion of no confidence, because this modernization means stopping the looting of public money. Every politician who runs away from European money because they force you to take the country in the right direction for Romanians, not in the right direction for your accounts”the minister also accused.
He also drew attention to the fact that they will pay “all Romanians”:
“All Romanians, who have to bear the bill again for the villainy or incompetence of some tricksters who have reached the leadership of the party and who want to keep us poor and uneducated because that’s the only way they can manipulate the people to give them another vote. Maybe, however, next time we’ll learn”concluded the Minister of European Investments and Funds.
