EIB survey: 80% of respondents in Romania say that more expensive energy has significantly reduced their purchasing power, while 55% have cut spending on food or healthcare
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Romania has the highest shares in the EU for both indicators, compared with 60% and 38%, respectively, at European level. The EIB survey also shows that 76% of respondents in Romania consider the energy transition urgent, while more stable or lower prices are the most frequently mentioned benefit.
Eight in ten respondents in Romania say that rising energy prices have significantly reduced their purchasing power over the past 12 months, while 55% say they have cut daily spending on food or healthcare to cope with costs. These are the highest shares among the 27 Member States, according to the climate survey published by the European Investment Bank (EIB) on 5 November. Across the EU, the proportions are 60% and 38%, respectively.
In brief
1. Romania records the EU’s highest shares of those reporting a significant reduction in purchasing power due to more expensive energy, at 80%, and of those who have reduced spending on food or healthcare, at 55%. The percentages measure survey responses, not the size of the income loss.
2. The pressure is also visible in other adjustments: 27% say they have gone into debt, asked for financial assistance or postponed an energy bill, while 47% have given up a holiday trip or a car journey. The latter percentage is also the highest in the EU.
3. The energy transition is considered urgent by 76% of respondents in Romania. More stable or lower prices are the most frequently cited benefit, at 79%, but a separate question shows that 48% expect their own bill to increase, while 23% expect it to decrease.
4. Solar energy is the most frequently mentioned priority, at 46%, followed by wind energy, at 26%. Natural gas is indicated by 24%, compared with 10% in the EU. The development of a European clean-technology industry is preferred by 55%, even if it takes longer than using imported equipment.
5. Ipsos bva interviewed 23,000 people aged at least 16 in the EU, including 1,000 in Romania, between 3 and 25 August 2026. The results are weighted. Eurostat data on the decline in retail trade in September provide separate context and do not demonstrate a causal link with the survey responses.
The difference between Romania and the European result is 20 percentage points for the significant impact on purchasing power. Within this total, 34% of respondents in Romania describe the effect as very significant, compared with 20% in the EU. The question concerns higher prices for natural gas, motor fuels, heating fuel or electricity over the past 12 months. The 80% figure does not mean that purchasing power fell by 80%.
In the ranking of estimated shares, Romania is followed by Greece, at 78%, and Bulgaria, at 74%. The same order appears for reductions in daily spending on food or healthcare: 55% in Romania, 52% in Greece and 50% in Bulgaria. The comparison describes the survey results without establishing that the small differences between countries are statistically significant.
For Romania, the 55% share of those who reduced spending on food or healthcare exceeds the EU result by 17 percentage points. The two destinations are combined in a single response, so the percentage cannot be attributed separately to food or medical services. Going into debt, requesting financial assistance or postponing an energy bill are reported together by 27%, compared with 16% in the EU.
Other adjustments are less frequent in Romania than at European level. Reducing the heating temperature in the home is mentioned by 27% of respondents, compared with 34% in the EU. Romania therefore does not lead on every indicator of consumption restraint.
Energy costs changed how 71% of respondents in Romania use their cars, compared with 60% in the EU. Almost half, 47%, say they gave up a car journey for a weekend, a holiday or a visit to family or friends, compared with 30% at European level. Romania has the highest share for this response.
Reducing journeys for shopping, medical appointments or administrative matters is indicated by 29%, slightly below the EU result of 31%. Replacing individual journeys with carpooling, public transport or cycling is mentioned by 32%, compared with 22% in the EU. Multiple responses may overlap and should not be added together.
Despite the pressure on spending, 76% of participants in Romania consider the energy transition urgent for the country, close to the EU level of 75%. In Romania, 79% cite more stable or lower prices among the benefits of the transition, while 75% cite reduced dependence on imported oil and gas. A response combining slowing climate change, reducing pollution and fewer health problems is chosen by 67%.
These benefits should not be confused with a favourable forecast for every household’s bill. In the separate question about the transition’s effect on their own bill, 48% of respondents in Romania expect an increase, 23% a decrease and 18% an approximately unchanged level. The rest do not know. This distinction explains why support for an objective can coexist with concerns about its costs.
At EU level, reducing dependence on oil and gas imports is the most frequently indicated benefit, at 82%, followed by more stable or lower prices, at 79%, and the climate, environmental and health benefit, at 76%. The EIB shows that energy autonomy ranks first in 16 countries, prices in eight, including Romania, and climate in three. Respondents could select multiple benefits.
The order changed compared with 2022, when the climate benefit ranked first in Romania and 18 other countries, while prices ranked first in none. The EIB specifies that the questions in the two editions were worded differently: in 2022 they concerned moving away from fossil fuels, while in 2026 they concerned the energy transition. The ranking of benefits can be compared within each country, but not the direct change in percentages.
If the EU progresses too slowly, 80% of respondents in Romania see a risk of long-term increases in energy prices and the cost of living, compared with 79% in the EU. Greater dependence on oil and gas imports is considered a risk by 74% of participants in Romania.
Regarding energy sources, 79% of respondents in Romania select at least one low-carbon source, compared with 87% in the EU. Solar energy is mentioned by 46%, and wind energy by 26%. Natural gas, a fossil fuel distinct from this category, is indicated by 24%, compared with 10% in the EU. These are preferences expressed in the survey, not an adopted energy mix.
To achieve the transition, 55% of respondents in Romania prefer the development of a competitive European clean-technology industry, even if it takes longer. The share is identical to that in the EU. Faster installation using imported equipment is preferred by 34% in Romania, compared with 29% in the EU. The first approach is the most popular in all 27 countries, which does not mean that it exceeds 50% everywhere.
Pooling EU countries’ resources to finance investment is preferred by 54% of respondents in Romania and by 59% at European level. The result expresses a general financing preference and does not amount to approval of any particular budgetary instrument.
EIB Vice-President Ioannis Tsakiris links the pressure felt by Romanian households to the need for more secure supplies and greater domestic production of clean energy. These can contribute to more affordable and more reliable energy for families, he believes.
Separately, Eurostat reported on 6 November that Romania’s retail trade volume fell in September by 1.3% compared with August and by 2.3% compared with September 2025. These are the second-largest monthly and annual declines among the countries with available data, after Germany. In the EU, volume fell by 0.6% month on month but remained 0.9% above last year’s level.
The Eurostat indicator measures sales adjusted for price variation, during a period subsequent to the EIB interviews. It does not show what share of the decline is driven by energy, and the survey cannot establish a causal link with sales developments.
The eighth edition of the EIB climate survey was conducted by Ipsos bva between 3 and 25 August 2026, on a sample of 23,000 people aged at least 16 from all 27 Member States. In Romania, 1,000 people were interviewed. The results are weighted for the representativeness of each country’s population, and percentages are rounded. They describe reported experiences and preferences without directly measuring actual income loss or the effectiveness of energy policies.
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