Republic of Moldova

The Republic of Moldova has been an EU candidate country since 2022 and a Contracting Party of the Energy Community since 2010, aligning its energy legislation with the EU.

Increasing energy security

The EU is Moldova’s key energy security partner. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ukraine and Moldova’s electricity grids were synchronised with the Continental European Grid in March 2022, strengthening Moldova’s energy resilience and reducing its exposure to regional disruptions. In 2022, Moldova also ended its historical dependence on Russian gas, after Russia cut supplies and triggered an energy crisis that pushed the country to secure alternative gas supplies and routes.

Since 1 January 2025, Gazprom, in breach of its contractual obligations, has ceased supplying gas to the Transnistrian region, which is not under control of constitutional authorities of the Republic of Moldova. As this gas was also used for power production and export to the Right Bank, this disruption triggered a severe energy crisis with significant economic and social consequences.

The EU responded rapidly, announcing €30 million in emergency support for the Transnistrian region on 27 January 2025, preventing a humanitarian crisis on the Left Bank and contributing to bringing down consumer prices on the Right Bank. Despite the challenge resulting from the sudden termination of electricity imports from Transnistria, Moldova, with the support of the EU, overcame the crisis and fully eliminated its dependence on Russian energy, including electricity generated in Transnistria. Since 2025, Moldova’s electricity demand has been met through a combination of substantially increased domestic renewable energy generation and imports from the EU.

On 4 February 2025, the Commission and Moldova agreed on a 2-year Comprehensive Strategy for Energy Independence and Resilience of Moldova. Its dual objective is to support Moldova to address the challenges stemming from ending reliance on Russian energy  and to fully integrate it in the EU energy market. The strategy was backed by €250 million in EU support in 2025. As part of the strategy, an additional offer of €60 million remains available for the people in the Transnistrian region of Moldova, subject to the fulfilment of concrete conditions related to human rights and fundamental freedoms, to be agreed with the government of Moldova prior to delivering the assistance and excludes support to energy intensive activities.

Although Moldova still remains dependent on fossil fuel and electricity imports, in recent years, it has rapidly expanded its renewable energy capacity, strengthened power interconnections with the EU and advanced electricity market integration. These efforts have largely contributed to ending the country’s reliance on Russian gas and on electricity from the Transnistria region.

Energy reforms in Moldova

As an EU candidate country since 2022, Moldova has significantly accelerated energy sector reforms, aligning its legislation with the EU acquis. Moldova has achieved significant progress in diversifying its energy supply, driven by strong political commitment for reform, as outlined under the Joint EU-Moldova Roadmap for market reforms, endorsed at the 5th High-Level Energy Dialogue in February 2024. 

In 2026, Moldova’s accession negotiations advanced with the informal opening of Cluster 4 (Green agenda and Sustainable connectivity) which includes energy (under Chapter 15), marking an important step forward. Moldova’s progress in reforms, including energy, is assessed in annual Enlargement reports and Energy Community Implementation Reports. This progress is supported by complementary frameworks, notably the Energy Community, the EU enlargement process and the EU-Moldova High-Level Energy Dialogue. Together, these mechanisms provide political steer, strategic guidance, technical assistance to ensure consistent progress towards EU integration. 

In recent years, key achievements include progress in strategic planning and market design, including the development of the first National Energy and Climate Plan, launch of renewable energy auctions and transposition of the Electricity Integration Package. 

In 2023, Moldova took decisive steps to align with the EU's Third Energy Package to comply with unbundling requirements in electricity and gas transmission systems, and to establish day ahead and intraday electricity markets by the end of 2025. Moldova launched its day-ahead (DAM) and intraday (IDM) electricity markets on 11 December 2025, marking an important milestone on the path toward integration into the European internal electricity market ahead of accession.

EU financial support

In October 2024, the EU announced a €1.9 billion Growth Plan for Moldova, aimed at accelerating economic convergence with the EU, strengthening energy security, and supporting structural reforms and investments in key sectors, including energy infrastructure, renewables, and energy efficiency.

By May 2026, Moldova had received nearly €480 million under the EU Growth Facility, with energy reforms already directly linked to disbursements, demonstrating that reform delivery is translating into tangible EU financial support.

The EU has provided substantial financial assistance to support Moldova’s energy sector and protect vulnerable households. Between 2021-2024, the EU provided €240 million in direct budget support to mitigate the impact of crisis, particularly to help the most vulnerable people. During the 2023-2024 heating season, more than 750 000 households benefited from compensation through the EU-supported Energy Vulnerability Reduction Fund (EVRF).

Moldova has also received €295 million in macro-financial assistance from the EU.

Related links