Iulia Chetrușca, representative of a condominium association in Chisinau, notices a significant difference after the association transitioned from a vertical to a horizontal heat distribution system. The condominium where he lives was selected in 2023 to participate in a project financed by the European Union and implemented by the UNDP. According to her, this change was felt in this cold season, with heat consumption dropping by more than 25%. Iulia Chetrușca told about the experience of switching to a horizontal distribution system during a debate discussing cogeneration and district heating systems.
The woman lives in a large complex of buildings with over 200 apartments, where last year an individual thermal point was installed and the heat distribution system was changed from a vertical to a horizontal one. Iulia Chetrușca says that currently each tenant benefits from a separate meter for hot water and heat. A thermostat is installed on each radiator, allowing tenants to adjust their temperature and use resources as needed.
Also, when the old system was working, tenants from the 10th floor to the 5th floor were advantaged, whereas those from the 4th floor down practically had a deficit of 30-40%. Now all tenants have access to heat equally. At the same time, approximately from 2008 until the implementation of this project, the condominium did not have hot water. Now, this problem has been fixed, ensuring the supply of hot water in the entire complex, pointed out Iulia Chetrușca.
To make the shift, the apartment owners chipped in with 20%, while 80% was contributed by the European Union. New individual heating points were installed, the pipes in the basement were replaced, and hot water meters were installed.
The authorities have developed a bill to promote cogeneration and district heating systems, which proposes a series of changes of major interest to both household consumers and block managers, real estate entrepreneurs and other businesses. Among them is the possibility for thermal energy units to invest in the reconstruction of internal systems and the provision of individual meters for each apartment, in order to facilitate the implementation of horizontal distribution, or the implementation of their own method of distribution of thermal energy. Currently, internal networks can only be upgraded by the block manager.
