Moldova seeks investment for wind, solar plants with first tender
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CHISINAU, Aug 16 (Reuters) -Moldova launched its first tender for wind and solar power plants on Friday as part of a push to reduce its reliance on Russian energy.
"Opening up for investors to develop renewables is yet another critical step towards ensuring greater energy security for Moldova," Energy Minister Victor Parlicov told Reuters.
"The development of renewables will empower us to produce our own energy, further solidifying Moldova's path to true energy independence."
Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries, was in "an incredibly vulnerable position" when Russia launched its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022, but worked hard to reduce its reliance on Russia, he said.
That action, he said, included connecting Moldova's grid to the European Network of Transmission System Operators (ENTSO-E), upgrading energy infrastructure to receive natural gas from diverse sources, and building electricity lines to enhance its connection with the European Union.
Moldova has condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and its pro-western government hopes to take the small agricultural economy into the EU by 2030.
The tender aims to construct wind power plants with a capacity of up to 105 megawatts and photovoltaic plants with a maximum capacity of 60 MW, the energy ministry said. The winning investor will get a 15-year fixed price guarantee for the electricity generated.
Official data shows Moldova increased the share of renewable energy sources in its electricity consumption to 10.5% in 2023 from 3.6% in 2021, driven by wind and solar. Officials said the total installed capacity was around 400 MW at the end of the second quarter of 2024.
Once the new power plants start working, the share of electricity from renewables would grow to about 16.6%, the ministry said.
Reporting by Olena Harmash; Editing by Tom Balmforth and David Holmes
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