The European Union will contribute €9,5 million in grants in support of credit lines provided under the EBRD Green Economy Financing Facility in residential sector (Residential GEFF). This joint initiative aims to incentivize Moldovan apartment and home-owners in undertaking energy efficiency renovations to reduce their energy bills and strengthen Moldova’s long-term energy security. The European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development signed a statement of intention for establishing a program to reduce the cost of energy efficiency renovations for residential buildings in the Republic of Moldova, IPN reports, with reference to a press release of the EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova.

“With this transformative new program, EU’s ambition is to help reduce significantly the cost of energy efficiency renovations of residential buildings in the Republic of Moldova. With EU’s €9.5 million grant contribution supporting EBRD’s credit lines, homeowners can look forward to significantly lower their energy bills in Moldova. This significant EU support complements the financing already provided in support of the energy efficiency renovation of public buildings and of the Government’s residential energy efficiency program for the most vulnerable households,” said European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi.

The Head of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Moldova Catarina Bjorlin Hansen said that participating banks under the program will offer loans to households for investments in energy efficiency measures, such as insulation, heat pumps, solar panels etc. “After successfully implementing these measures, borrowers will be eligible for cashback, funded by the European Union,” stated Catarina Bjorlin Hansen.

Energy Minister Victor Parlicov said that the Republic of Moldova is more than twice as energy-intensive as the European Union, and half of all energy is consumed in buildings. “Much of this is simply wasted due to the lack of energy efficiency measures. Through the Residential Energy Efficiency Fund we will invest in rational energy consumption and lower bills for our citizens,” said the minister.

The horizontal distribution system can be applied in more than 80% of the country’s multistorey blocks connected to the centralized heating system. Over 70% of multistorey blocks in Chișinău have low energy performance. In blocks of flats in Chișinău and Bălți where a horizontal distribution system has been installed, tenants have registered average savings on their bills of up to 22% in Chisinau and over 40% in Bălți.