According to Romania’s Ministry for the Environment, Romania could earn at least €2bn until 2015 from the sale of emission rights. As reductions in carbon emissions are calculated under the Kyoto Protocol according to base emissions in 1989, Romania is, like many of its former communist neighbours, likely to benefit greatly from emissions trading rights. This is because during the transition from communism to a market economy, Romania’s total emissions dropped significantly as the economy became less reliant on heavy industry. While this involved economic hardship during transition, this could now become a golden opportunity for post-communist countries to acquire much needed capital.