Over 70% of residential blocks in Moldova have low levels of energy efficiency, which is reflected in the high bills. A new paradim is required to make the transition from energy bill relief payments to cutting consumption with better energy efficiency of homes. This was discussed during an IPN debate on Tuesday.

Ion Muntean, director of the National Center for Sustainable Energy, said that EU countries had to deal with expensive energy much earlier than us. This led the European Union to develop policies and regulations to achieve energy saving targets. “Resources were allocated for programs to support consumers, by target groups. Whether it was the residential, industrial or public sector, various mechanisms were developed to support the efficiency of energy consumption, and ultimately, cut bills as much as possible”, said Ion Muntean.

He added that Moldova has been a member of the Energy Community since 2010 and as such has committed to transposing European legislation in the field. A number of policies have been developed to provide clear mechanisms and objectives regarding the efficiency of energy consumption. “Policies continue to be developed and adjusted to European standards and requirements in terms of energy performance, be it the building sector, the industrial sector, and so on. We are in the process of transposing and updating these objectives and standards at the national level”, said the director of the National Center for Sustainable Energy.

Mihai Tîrșu, director of the Energy Institute of the Technical University of Moldova, noted that over 80% of the building stock in Moldova was built during the Soviet period. This means that energy efficiency was not a priority from the very beginning, because energy sources were very cheap. “Now that the situation has changed, everyone understood that energy resources cannot be cheap, they faced very high expenses to ensure the necessary comfort, especially on the thermal energy side. The most energy-consuming are standalone houses, because so far the emphasis has not even been placed on the residential sector. However, investments in efficiency measures are much more difficult to recover in the residential sector, especially in rural areas, than in multi-storey buildings in cities”, said Tîrșu.

He went on to note that Moldova has pledged to fight climate change and reduce CO2 emissions. By implementing energy efficiency measures, energy consumption is also reduced and the targets can be reached. In his opinion, it is also important to stimulate private investments from individuals, because the government cannot afford to cover such expenses. According to him, the state can only provide competitive and attractive financial instruments for the residential sector.

Natalia Roșca, a Chisinau resident, shared her experience of living in a Soviet-era block built in 1958, which originally had a so-called vertical heating system. “That is, each neighbor depended on one another and the typical problem was that those on the top floor had scorching hot radiators, while those on the ground floor were freezing. We had problems in the past when people on a certain floor couldn’t have heat for a whole winter, because there was some technical fault and we couldn’t find it. Now we have transitioned to a horizontal heating system, when each apartment has its own mini-heating network”, the woman says.

Residents now pay for the calories they actually consume, Roșca added, instead of a rate per square meter. “Everyone controls their own temperature in the apartment. People with larger apartments are able to regulate each room. There is definitely less consumption. We saw the difference from the  first winter, we’ll see how the next one will be... But anyway, I’m glad I was able to adjust my temperature for perfect thermal comfort and I know that I'm not paying per square meter, but rather for what I actually consume”, said Natalia Roșca.

The debate titled “Improving energy efficiency in the residential sector with European support” was the fifth installment of the “EU Accession Benefits” Series, run by IPN with the support of the Soros Moldova Foundation.