Economy minister Ion Ariton declared that the IMF demanded the liberalization of prices for natural gas and electric energy and asked for a new calculus formula for them, Romanian news agency Mediafax reads. He said that liberalization of regulated prices does not necessarily imply an increase of prices paid by consumers. In Romania, almost all electricity producers are compelled by the national authority regulating the energy sector to allocate part of their production for the population’s consumption, at the prices set by the national authority.