The European Union provides the Republic of Moldova with a €15 million grant for improving the energy efficiency of a number of national medical institutions. The grant agreement was signed between the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development and the European Investment Bank on Tuesday. According to the authorities, when the money is disbursed, the public buildings that will be chosen within the project will have their thermal insulation improved and will benefit from modern lighting systems and efficient heating and cooling systems with lower consumption, IPN reports.
In the ceremony to sign the agreement, Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spînu, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development, said the €15 million supplements the €60 million loan provided by the EU through the EBRD and EIB for implementing the Moldova Energy Efficiency Project. It goes to a total of €75 million for increasing the energy efficiency of public buildings. The state will contribute €19 million and the project’s budget will therefore total €94 million.
“At the first stage, energy audits will be conducted for the compounds of the following public buildings: the Emergency Medicine Institute, the Cardiology Institute, the Oncological Institute, the Mother and Child Institute, the National Clinical Hospital, the Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery, the National Medical Diagnosis Center, the Bălți Clinical Hospital and the Codru Clinical Psychiatric Hospital. Each project and the efficiently used financial resources will help us to increase resilience and the future development prospects,” stated Andrei Spînu.
According to the official, the procedures for ratifying the signed agreement will be performed as swiftly as possible so that the necessary feasibility studies can be carried out. The renovation works will start at the beginning of next year. “Based on this grant offered by the EU, we will be able to reduce energy consumption and to save up to €5 million a year, according to the first calculations. The money could be also invested in other development projects,” stated the Deputy Premier.
In the same event, the EU Ambassador in Chisinau Janis Mazeiks said the European Union becomes involved in environmental diplomacy and helps the Republic of Moldova to achieve these ambitions. Respectively, it offers additional financial resources for ensuring climate neutrality and energy security. “We are very glad that this government really prioritized energy efficiency, energy security, energy independence. These are important things for the country’s resilience,” stated the official.
The Head of the EIB Office in Moldova Alberto Carlei noted that this project to improve energy efficiency in the public sector is very important. “Energy efficiency is a key element for Moldova, which increased the country’s energy independence and helped to reduce emissions, consumption, etc. The goal of the project is to improve energy efficiency by better insulating buildings, by installing better lighting systems and heating and cooling systems and by setting up photovoltaic systems where it is possible,” stated Alberto Carlei.
