Ponta, contradicted by the Romanian waters: “We do not hold information on the existence of any decision aimed at deliberate flood”/ The former prime minister said that he gave an order that saved Belgrade, but flooded villages in Romania

The way of exploiting the dams from the Iron I and II dates during the floods of May 2014 was established by the Romanian-Serbian common energy dispatcher, based on a convention ratified by the two countries, it is shown in a response of the national administration, transmitted to the request hotnews.ro. The specifications come after, last week, former prime minister Victor Ponta said that he ordered the dam to be opened so that Belgrade was not flooded, and instead several villages were flooded on the Romanian territory.

• “They gave it to me (Serbian citizenship-no) because I helped them with an extraordinary thing, which I will write in my memoir book. During the floods (from 2014-no), I gave an order over the Romanian structures to open the valley from the Iron Gates and in this way I was not flooded. Belgrade, ”Ponta said, in a podcast moderated by Robert Turcescu.
• Asked why the Romanian side did not want to open the dam, Ponta replied: “Because the Romanian side was flooded. And it was flooded. But I talked to ISU, I moved people, I gave damages quickly. You did not know anything, the press. There were villages, downstream …”.

The Romanian waters say that it has no information about a “deliberate incitement”

At the request of HotNews.ro, ANAR stated that, in cases of large flows on the Danube, the Iron Gates dam is open so that the river flows in a natural regime, as provided by the operating convention signed by Romania and Serbia in 1998. The institution says that it does not have information about “a deliberate flood”, as Ponta says.

“We do not have information on the existence of any decision aimed at the deliberate flooding of some areas on the territory of Romania. The measure of transiting the Danube debts in a natural regime by hydrotechnical arrangement Iron I and II was established by the common Romanian-Serbian energy dispatcher, based on art. Safety of the hydropower system at exceptional debts ”, it is shown in the institution's response.

The opening of the dam takes place under flow conditions of over 11,500 cubic meters per second, the ANAR specialists said, specifying that, at that time, the Danube flow was up to 12,600 mc/s.

“No inhabited areas were affected, no people were evacuated and no hydrotechnical constructions were affected throughout the Romanian Danube sector. About 9248 ha of forests were flooded, 2932 ha pastures and 1877 ha arable land.”

Ask whether the discharge of the dam at the Iron Gates stopped flooding the Belgrade, ANAR representatives replied: “The floods in Belgrade were mainly caused by the Sava river and other tributaries of the Danube. The iron gates operate in large water (over 11,500 mc/s) only transiting the natural debts.”

In fact, the then Minister of Energy, Răzvan Nicolescu, said, according to the statements of Victor Ponta, that the institution that makes decisions in the case of discharge of a river is the National Administration (ANAR) and stressed that he was never consulted and never participated in a decision to discharge a river.

The Iron Gate Operation Regulations comply with all international agreements

Also, ask if the decision was made at the order of the then prime minister, Victor Ponta, as he said, the Romanian Water Manager showed that the hydrotechnical operating decisions are taken within the Energy Dispatcher Service in accordance with the provisions of the Operating Convention of the Hydroenergetic System and the Iron Gates, and the Iron Part.

At the same time, this regulation for large water exploitation complies with all international agreements and conventions in the field.

“Based on the data we have at the downstream hydrometric stations (Gruia, Calafat, Bechet) we certify that the measured transit debts were below 12,600 mc/S confirming the strict application of the operating regulation,” the response from the Romanian waters is shown.