Around 150,000 vulnerable families across the country will benefit from support in the next three years to replace their old appliances with new and energy-efficient ones. The Cabinet approved the regulation of the Voucher Program for Household Appliances, IPN reports.

The Ministry of Energy said that the document regulates the way of granting vouchers, which will cover up to 70% of the cost of household appliances. These will be offered to consumers registered in the government program “Meter Aid”, based on the criteria regarding the energy vulnerability degree of the household the previous year, the average monthly electricity consumption, as well as the composition of families requesting financial support for the replacement of household appliances. 

The eligibility criteria will be examined and approved by the Financing and Risk Committee of the National Center for Sustainable Energy (CNED). The selected beneficiaries will be informed about the availability of vouchers through the Personal Cabinet on compensatii.gov.md, through SMS messages or by e-mail.

“In the long term, the Program will contribute to increasing economic security, making energy consumption more efficient and reducing energy poverty, by reducing the population's expenses for bills," the Ministry of Energy also mentions.

The pilot program for granting vouchers “Rabla for Household Appliances” was carried out by UNDP in partnership with CNED and financed by the European Union, with a total budget of approximately US$5.8 million. So far, over 39,000 vouchers were used by families who were able to replace incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs and purchase new, energy-efficient appliances.