1 The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views and position of the Executive Directors of the World Bank, the European Union, or Table of Contents the Government of Romania. The TRACE diagnostic is part of work done under the Romania Executive Summary /1 Regional Development Program – a Reimbursable Advisory Service activity, undertaken by the World Bank at the request Background /4 of the Ministry of Regional Development and Public National Legislation Regarding Energy /5 Administration, with EU funding. The report was written by a Background Cluj-Napoca /9 team comprised of Manuela Mot, Ranjan Bose, Sebastian Burduja, and Marcel Ionescu-Heroiu. Cristina Zirimis has Sustainable Cluj-Napoca /14 provided logistical and administrative support throughout the District Heating /14 process. The team would like to thank the colleagues at the Street Lighting /18 Ministry of Regional Development and Public Administration Municipal Buildings /19 (particularly Ionuţ Trincă and Bogdan Ţigău), as well as the Power /22 colleagues in the Cluj-Napoca City Hall and the Cluj County Private Transport /24 Council, who supported the team throughout. Public Transport /26 Water and Waste Water /30 TRACE (Tool for Rapid Assessment of City Energy) was Solid Waste /31 developed by ESMAP (Energy Sector Management Assistance Program), a unit of the World Bank, and is available for Energy Efficiency Recommendations /35 download and free use at: http://esmap.org/TRACE Urban Transport /36 Municipal Buildings /42 Street Lighting /43 District Heating /46 Annexes /50 1 Executive Summary have been replaced with modern, efficient ones and, thus, reduced the After the 1989 Revolution, Romania began its transition from a centralized electricity consumption; the transport network is well developed, system to a market-run economy. Today the country is a member of the connecting the city from one side to another; the generation of solid waste is lower than other cities in the region; and the percentage of solid European Union (EU) and NATO. After more than a decade of economic restructuring and political change, the country has taken significant steps waste recycled is good. Most of the municipal buildings need to catch up with the economic performance of more developed EU rehabilitation work to decrease heating consumption and reduce heating countries. Although radical reforms brought about significant changes, the bills. Nonetheless, thermal rehabilitation of residential buildings as well as standard of living of Romanians is still behind the EU average. some of the public schools and kindergartens improved the overall energy Cluj-Napoca (Cluj) is one of cities where such disparities are less efficiency. pronounced, as the region is more developed and prosperous than most Electricity tariffs are regulated by the national government. The government is still subsidizing the energy price for domestic users. regions in the country. Cluj has developed quite well in the past few years, and it has become one of the most flourishing cities in the country, having However, the liberalization of the energy sector has already started for a good growing potential. At present, the city is an important economic the industrial users and will continue this year with the non-domestic center, home to several local brands that have become famous clients. Subsidies are going to be gradually eliminated by the end of 2017, nationwide as well as in Europe. Moreover, Cluj is known today as the when the liberalization of the market will be complete. Energy production “capital” of the IT sector in the country, due to an aggressive expansion of from renewable sources is encouraged, and Green Certificates are this field in recent years. provided to such producers. The local government has a number of ambitious projects to The city’s recent growth has led to significant changes in the social and economic life of Cluj residents. Most of these developments develop the city, improve its performance and quality and, not in the have positively affected people’s life, whereas a few were accompanied by least, open the doors for more energy efficiency projects. Such plans inconveniences and difficulties. include expanding the public transport to the wider metropolitan area, developing non-pedestrian networks, purchasing non-polluting buses, For instance, the increasing number of cars in the city caused heavy traffic congestion, high fuel consumption, and large greenhouse improving the street lighting system, continuing rehabilitation of emissions. With only few parking lots, a handful of dedicated bus lanes, educational facilities, and so forth. and lacking needed ring roads to help re-route through-city traffic, Cluj is one of the most advanced cities in Romania and it should commuting has become quite a struggle for both private and public continue to build on this foundation to become more developed and transport. The district heating system is undergoing significant challenges flourishing. Based on the results of the implementation of the TRACE tool, following the massive disconnection of tens of thousands of customers in this report outlines some ideas on how that can be done. last ten years. Despite some modernization and rehabilitation work that has been performed on the network, some of the obsolete heating pipes TRACE (Tool for Rapid Assessment of City Energy) is a simple and quick continue to deteriorate, allowing for water leakages and heat losses. diagnostic tool that is used to assess a city’s energy performance in six Although the water system is covering the entire city and all water service areas (urban transport, municipal buildings, water and wastewater, solid waste management, public lighting, and power and connections are metered, part of that infrastructure has also deteriorated throughout the years and is prompting heavy water losses in the network. heat) and to provide recommendations for improving energy efficiency. In But there are also notable things Cluj has managed to accomplish each of the service areas, TRACE uses a benchmarking algorithm to in the past few years. All streets in the city are lit; old inefficient bulbs evaluate energy cost savings potential, and factoring in the level of 1 influence of local authorities, it prioritizes what the authorities should do firm steps toward finishing the city’s ring road to ease traffic congestion in according to where the biggest savings can be achieved. Cluj and provide commuters with alternative commuting routes. To complete data collection and to get a more comprehensive idea of issues in the city, a World Bank field trip was organized in January 2013. Traffic Restraint Measures Work in Cluj-Napoca was carried out in close collaboration with local As the number of private cars has gone up in the recent years, local authorities and public and private utility services providers. At the end of authorities should identify ways to curb private vehicle usage and focus on this quantitative and qualitative analysis, several recommendations were more sustainable, efficient, and less costly transport alternatives. The drawn out. These are summarized below. Local Council has already limited private inter-regional bus operators to only three “legal” stops in the city, and such buses will be totally banned Non-Pedestrian Network Development from entering the city once “Park and Ride” facilities and intermodal The city authorities are carrying on with the plans started in the late 2000s terminals will be developed. The local public administration aims to with regard to non-pedestrian trasport, and they are working on enforce reduced speed zones in the city center. The city may consider expanding the network to the wider metorpolitan area. The city further initiatives, such as setting up “no driving days” to educate and lead government is currently implementing a project to build 20 km of bike by example. lanes connecting Cluj to Floresti and Apahida, in addition to the existing 40 km. People will be able to bike using 58 km of dedicated bike lanes and Parking Restraint Measures rent out 500 bicycles from 50 self-service bicycle docking stations in the One of the best ways to deal with traffic congestion is the development of wider metropolitan area. “Park and Ride” facilities. City government is taking into consideration this efficient method to promote multimodality by linking parking to public Public Transport Development transport. People who travel to the city drive their cars to these facilities, Cluj has a well-developed public transportation system and a testimony to from where they take public transport to get to their workplace. In this is the fact that half of the commuters in the city use public transit for addition, local authorities are planning on building underground parking, their daily trips. Local authorities plan to further invest in the efficiency of as well as hiking prices for remaining parking spaces in the city center. the current system by purchasing new, energy-efficient rolling stocks, However, before such facilities are developed, one has to have a better expanding the tram network, extending the public transport system to the understanding of commuting patterns in the larger metropolitan area, and metropolitan area, and introducing e-ticketing. If the electric bus project the extension of public transport infrastructure should precede the will go through, then Cluj will be the first city in Romania to have such development of such facilities. means of public transportation. Municipal Buildings Benchmarking Program Traffic Flow Optimization The municipal building stock numbers around 100 units, of which 75% are As everywhere else in the country, traffic congestion is a major problem educational facilities. Given that there is no database tracking the energy for both Cluj residents and city managers. In order to tackle this issue, the performance of these buildings, it is important to first get an idea of which local government should focus on measures channeled at changing driving buildings offer the greatest saving potential.