Hospitals in Chisinau are preparing for a possible power outage and are checking alternative energy sources, Vladimir Bolocan, deputy head of the Main Directorate of Medical and Social Assistance at the mayor’s office of the capital of Moldova said.
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On December 5, Prime Minister Dorin Recean dismissed Energy Minister Viktor Parlikov, announced that he would temporarily act as head of the Ministry of Energy and intends to introduce a state of emergency in the energy field from December 16. He also warned that due to possible problems with gas supplies, there are risks of power outages in the republic.
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“We have ordered all hospitals to check the functionality of their electric generators so that if it becomes necessary to use alternative sources of electricity, we will be ready,” Bolocan said at a meeting of city services.
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According to him, all possibilities for generating electricity in conditions of the energy crisis will be considered.
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Now the main supplier of electricity to Moldova is Transnistria. Since December 2022, the Moldovagaz enterprise has been receiving gas from two sources – from the state enterprise Energocom and the Russian Gazprom. Russian gas is sent to Transnistria in exchange for electricity. Moldavian State District Power Plant covers 80% of Moldova’s electricity needs.
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Chisinau and Bucharest entered into a memorandum of intent in December 2023 to unite the gas and electricity networks of both countries. The memorandum outlines the possibility of increasing the capacity for transporting natural gas and extending the Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline by building a new gas pipeline around Chisinau. According to the Moldovan Ministry of Energy, this goal can be achieved by the end of 2031.
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Regarding the interconnection of power grids, the memorandum provides for the creation of a 400 kV power transmission line (Suceava – Balti), which will directly connect Romania and Moldova, as well as the modernization of the existing 110 kV interconnection power line Jush – Ciora. At the same time, the document provides conditions for the appointment of the Romanian company OPCOM as the operator of the electricity market in Moldova with the aim of integrating it with the EU electricity market.
