Energy policies in the Republic of Moldova continue to be driven by three interrelated constraining factors – (i) limited indigenous resources consisting mainly of biomass, which cover only about 25% of domestic consumption, (ii) a homogeneous structure of the natural gas and electricity market with monopolistic or market-dominant suppliers, and (iii) low energy efficiency throughout the value chain from generation up to final consumption of resources in all sectors of the national economy. The listed factors correlate perfectly with the three dimensions of the concept of energy security, which is based on the availability, affordability and sustainability of an energy system.

Since 2010, as a contracting party to the Energy Community Treaty (ECT), the Republic of Moldova is committed to transpose and implement the acquis communautaire into the national legislation. Since then, the EU policies, adapted to the conditions of the contracting parties to the ECT, continue to serve as a reference and guidance for a coordinated approach of the challenges the energy system of the Republic of Moldova faces.

By approving the 2030 Energy Strategy , Moldova has aligned its overall energy objectives with those of the European Union. Thus, over the last decade, the efforts have been directed towards achieving these objectives, including ensuring the availability, affordability and sustainability of energy resource consumption.

An objective assessment of the outcome of the efforts made can serve as a factual assessment of the energy situation at the beginning of 2023 in terms of the progress achieved in meeting the commitments made under the ECT. 

Against the backdrop of the acute energy crisis, which took off in the second half of 2021, the new national political and geopolitical context in February 2022 forced the acceleration of energy reforms. Similar to the so-called ‘perfect storm’  of events that triggered and amplified the natural gas and electricity price crisis in 2021, subsequently, through the concurrence of several internal and external factors, some remarkable achievements were made in progressing with the energy reforms in Moldova, especially in terms of diversification of energy supply sources.

The status of EU candidate country, obtained on 23 June 2022, significantly raises expectations not only for the progress of harmonization, but also for the implementation of the acquis communautaire in the Republic of Moldova.

The situation in the Republic of Moldova is heavily influenced by the new geopolitical conditions, uncertainties and risks related to the developments on the energy resource markets. This requires not only to continue the fast-paced implementation of reforms and to increase resilience to shocks induced by the multitude of overlapping crises, but also to set the policy priorities in the energy sector according to the expectations of both the society and development partners. Moreover, the objective to accelerate the European integration process suggests the need for aligning the priorities with the EU ambitious policies.

An important signal, proving awareness of the challenges to be addressed, is the establishment of a ministry dedicated to the energy sector. It is worth noting the speed with which the Ministry of Energy has communicated its medium-term development vision and priorities, which are derived from the Government Activity Program and meet the Government’s three general strategic objectives by 2030. Moreover, in the context of the EU integration objective, a new long-term goal has been announced – to decarbonise the economy by 2050, in line with the EU’s objective of becoming climate-neutral by 2050.

SECURITY OF NATURAL GAS AND ELECTRICITY SUPPLY

The first medium-term priority of the authorities is to ‘prevent and mitigate potential energy crises, including by securing strategic gas purchasing and stocks and by diversifying electricity supply’. Indeed, taking into account the structure of gross domestic energy consumption, the sources of supply with energy resources, the share or the market power held by each of them, the resources contributing most to the degree of vulnerability regarding security of supply are natural gas and electricity.

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This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union and the "Friedrich Ebert" Foundation (FES). Its content is the content represents the sole responsibility of the "Civil Society for European Integration" project, financed by the European Union and co-financed by the "Friedrich Ebert" Foundation. The content of the publication belongs to the authors and does not necessarily reflect the vision of the European Union and the "Friedrich Ebert" Foundation (FES).