Moldova warns rising gas costs could drive electricity tariff hikes
Moldova's energy regulator warned that surging natural gas costs will inevitably impact domestic electricity tariffs, as higher fuel prices drive up power production expenses at local combined heat and power plants.
Alexei Taran, Director General of the National Agency for Energy Regulation (ANRE), said that end-user power prices reflect multiple components. Local cogeneration plants represent an immediate upward pressure on overall procurement calculations.
Cogeneration costs and regulatory review
“What is certain is that this component, following the requests submitted by Termoelectrica and CET-Nord, is set to increase,” Taran said during an interview with Realitatea.md. “It will clearly rise because the price of gas has climbed, but we will examine how much we approve and how it weighs on the total procurement basket.”
Domestic thermal power plants account for approximately 15% to 20% of Moldova's national electricity acquisition basket. Taran pointed out that imported power covers roughly 65% of domestic consumption, with the remainder sourced from domestic generation, including renewables and thermal plants.
“Natural gas is the primary origin point, because gas generates both electricity and thermal power,” Taran said. “A price increase in natural gas systematically affects the entire production chain.”
Pending supplier requests
The regulatory assessment comes after state-owned energy trader Energocom filed a request on September 23 to raise domestic natural gas tariffs for household consumers from €1.04 (approx. 20.30 MDL) to €1.34 (26.24 MDL) per cubic meter, inclusive of VAT, marking a 29.3% increase.
Simultaneously, municipal utilities Termoelectrica in Chișinău and CET-Nord in Bălți petitioned the regulator for substantial heating tariff revisions, requesting increases of over 82% and roughly 96%, respectively. Termoelectrica justified its proposal by citing projected average natural gas purchase costs of €1,085 (approx. 21,212 MDL) per 1,000 cubic meters for the fourth quarter of 2026, up from €722 (14,114 MDL) applied in the previous period.
Taran emphasized that the regulator has not yet established a specific percentage increase for electricity tariffs. He noted that final retail rates will also depend on wholesale prices in regional import markets and regulatory reviews scheduled through the end of the year.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
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