Moldova will import from Romania some 62% of the electricity it needs in January for the territory controlled by the constitutional authorities (not including separatist region Transnistria), and the imports’ instant share will drop towards 50% only during night hours when the consumption decreases, according to the projections drafted by the state energy trader Energocom.

The authorities in Transnistria estimate that their coal reserves can cover some 50 days of electricity consumption – but the period might be shortened if the households choose to use electricity for heating after the district heating and hot water were discontinued as of January 1.

Gazprom discontinued its natural gas supplies to Moldova as of January 1. Energocom already lowered to 40% in December its reliance on the electricity provided by Transnistria’s power plant MoldGRES based on the natural gas supplied by Gazprom. The 40% share will be covered by purchases on Romania’s electricity market (mainly from the day-ahead market).

The imports from Romania depend on the commercial capacity allocated at the border, Energocom points out. But it’s more than this: the imports will depend on the technical capacity of the interconnectors, currently just over 315 MW compared to over 700 MW instant consumption in Moldova during peak hours. 

Until January 8, after Christmas (celebrated in Moldova under the Eastern Orthodox calendar), the consumption will remain moderate – but afterwards, it is reasonable to expect power delivery restrictions in the industrial sector.

The average price of electricity in Moldova will predictably increase as a significant part of the acquisitions from Romania will be operated on the day-ahead market. Most of the imports, 39% of total consumption, will be operated on Romania’s market OPCOM. Energocom discloses that 16.3% of the consumption will be secured by Nuclearelectrica (band electricity delivered at a rate of 100 MW), and another 6.7% will be delivered under other bilateral contracts (with OMV Petrom’s Brazi gas-fired power plant, energy delivered at a rate of 100 MW during 16 hours per day and at a lower rate during the rest of the time).

Moldova estimates that the renewable energy installations will contribute 10.1% of the electricity needed by domestic consumers in January – with a note on the intermittent nature of deliveries from such installations.

(Photo: Nataliia Babinska/ Dreamstime)

iulian@romania-insider.com