Who does the Ministry of Energy propose to lead Hidroelectrica? A former PDL minister, among the three people
The Romanian state, through the Ministry of Energy, made three proposals for the positions of members in the Supervisory Board of Hidroelectrica, which will be approved in the AGM meeting on November 20, according to the data published on the company's website. One of the three proposed is Ion Ariton (69 years old), former minister of economy in the Boc government.
Ion Ariton was acquitted, in 2018, in the Gala Bute case, for the accusations of improper participation in abuse of office and use of influence in order to obtain undue benefits. In that case, Elena Udrea received six years in prison with execution.
According to the CV published on the Hidroelectrica website, Ion Ariton has not had any activity since 2021. Between 2019 and 2021 he was a member of the Board of Directors of the National SME Loan Guarantee Fund.
Ion Ariton was a senator in the 2012-2018 and 2008-2012 legislatures. He was the leader of the PDL Sibiu.
Ion Ariton and the meetings with the head of Gazprom
Between 2010 and 2012, he was Minister of Economy. In October 2011, as a minister, he visited Moscow to meet the head of Gazprom, Alexei Miller. In October 2010, he met with Alexei Miller in Bucharest, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Economy.
Officially, the purpose of these meetings was to conclude an agreement to eliminate intermediaries for gas imports, which did not happen. But the discussions went further than that, to the possibility of the Russians taking over gas deposits from Romania.
Between 2005 and 2007 he was the prefect of Sibiu, and between 2007 and 2008 he was a government inspector.
From 1993 to 2002, he held management positions, commercial director and general director at Petrom, Sibiu branch.
At the beginning of the 2000s, he was investigated, in a file that ended with the criminal prosecution not starting, following some financial irregularities discovered in the management of Petrom Sibiu.
Ion Ariton has a degree in economics, having studied at the Faculty of Economic Sciences in Timisoara.
Other proposals at Hidroelectrica
The Ministry of Energy Bogdan Ivan also proposed to the Supervisory Board of Hidroelectrica Catălin Vlăduţ Popescu and Emil Merdan, both professional engineers.
Catălin Vlăduţ Popescu (43 years old) is a teacher, since 2008, at the Bucharest Technical University of Construction. He is also a scientific collaborator of the University of Liege, Belgium.
Since 2016, he is technical director and researcher at Apa Proiect SRL, which deals with the design of hydropower constructions. Mai is a researcher at Aquaproiect SA, which also deals with the design of hydropower constructions. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Municipal Eco Sanitation Company Bucharest SA.
Between 2019 and June 2023, he was a member of the Board of Directors of Hidroelectrica. Between 2019 and 2022, he was general director of Titan Power SA.
Between 2018 and 2019, he was chief of staff of the director of the Energy Participation Administration Company. Between 2015-2020, he was a project manager at Hidro Tarniţa SA. Over time, he coordinated several hydrotechnical and hydropower development projects.
Emil Merdan (61 years old) is from 2022 administrator of EMIECA Econs, which deals with consulting in the energy field. Between 2021 and 2025, he was an adviser on European affairs at the Romanian Energy Center. Most of his career, from 1994 to 2021, is related to the distribution activity at Electrica, where he held several positions, including general manager.
