The European Union, the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the European Investment
Bank (EIB) have offered a funding package of EUR 92 million for the
construction of a gas pipeline from Romania to Moldova in order to strengthen
Moldova’s energy security.
EIB and EBRD each lend EUR
41 million for this project and the EU provides a EUR 10 million grant. The
funds will be sent to the state-run company Vestmoldtransgaz that will build
and operate the pipeline and the interconnector between Romania and Moldova.
Following this project, the
process of connecting the gas transport systems of Romania and Moldova will be
completed. Chisinau will be connected to the interconnector linking Iasi, a
city located in the east of Romania, to Ungheni, a city in Moldova, located on
the border with Romania.
The interconnector was
built in 2014 to allow Moldova, a country that heavily relies on imports of
energy to diversity its energy sources. The EU also offered a EUR 7 million
grant for building this interconnector.
(
romania-insider.com
, December 20, 2016)