The simple length of the drinking water distribution network was 1.9% higher at the end of last year compared to the situation existing on December 31, 2023, that of the sewage pipes recorded an increase of 4.4%, and that of natural gas had increased by 3.7%, according to data published on Friday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS).
Thus, the simple length of the drinking water distribution network, for the whole country, was 96,936.7 kilometers, 1,825.5 kilometers higher than the situation existing at the end of 2023, according to Agerpres.
At the level of municipalities and cities, the simple length of the drinking water distribution network stood at 32,313.5 km, as of December 31, 2024, up 1.2% compared to the end of 2023.
The quantity of drinking water distributed to consumers nationwide was, at the end of last year, 809.08 million cubic meters, 19.04 million cubic meters more than in 2023. Of this quantity, drinking water distributed for domestic use was 609.74 million cubic meters, representing 75.4% of the total.
The proportion of drinking water distributed to consumers who have installed water meters, in the total distributed, was 96.1%, the difference in the quantity of drinking water distributed being recorded in the „flat rate” system.
Regarding the sewage network, in 2024, the activity of discharging wastewater from households and economic and social units was carried out in 314 municipalities and cities and in 1,303 communes.
The total length of the sewage network at the end of 2024 was 49,958.1 km, of which 27,934 km in municipalities and cities.
Compared to the previous year, in 2024, the length of the sewage network expanded by 2,084.9 km (respectively by 613.2 km in urban areas and by 1,471.7 km in rural areas).
Last but not least, the total length of natural gas distribution pipelines was 50,972.4 km at the end of last year, of which 26,558 km in municipalities and cities.
During 2024, natural gas was distributed in 1,023 localities, of which 255 were municipalities and cities.
Compared to 2023, last year the length of natural gas distribution pipelines expanded by 1,828.2 km.
The volume of natural gas distributed at the end of 2024 was 7.329 billion cubic meters, 6.5 million cubic meters more than the previous year. Of the total volume of natural gas distributed last year, 3.135 billion cubic meters were intended for household consumption, representing 42.8% of the total volume of natural gas distributed.
Of the total volume of gas distributed, 84.4% were distributed in urban areas.
The thermal energy distributed in 2024 was 5.582 million Gcal, 83,935 Gcal less than in 2023, of which 4.774 million Gcal for the population, down 28,323 Gcal.
Thermal energy was distributed in 57 localities in Romania, of which 50 were municipalities and cities.