Consequently, consumers will pay 5.88 lei more for every cubic metre of gas, which represents a tariff increase of almost 41 per cent.
The new tariff was approved by the National Energy Regulatory Agency (NARE) on 21 August 2026, after Energocom had initially requested a tariff of 20.93 lei per cubic metre.
Following a review and adjustment of the calculations, ANRE approved a lower tariff of 20.30 lei per cubic metre.
For a household consuming 200 cubic metres of gas per month in winter, this means additional costs of approximately 1,176 lei in just one month.
According to the arguments put forward by Energocom, the tariff increase is mainly due to rising prices on international markets against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Compensation halved
At the same time, the government has sharply reduced the amount of compensation allocated to the population for the coming cold season.
The government has allocated a total of 550 million lei for November and December 2026 to cover cash compensation for energy costs. This amounts to an average of 275 million lei per month. Last year, over the five months of the heating season, the authorities spent a total of 2.69 billion lei, equivalent to approximately 538 million lei per month. In other words, the total amount allocated for compensation until the end of the year has been reduced by approximately 49 per cent.
This was previously confirmed by Prime Minister Vasile Tofan, who stated that the government would not be able to maintain the previous proportion of beneficiaries this season.
What do people think?
The internet is full of comments about this increase.
“The new tariff in Moldova is ten times higher than in Russia, four times higher than in Ukraine, and 50 per cent higher than in Romania. The question is, will consumers be able to pay for it this winter, and what is the point of Energocom with its procurement schemes?”
“Four lei was expensive; PAS supporters were running round the square with placards, but 20 is just right.”
“And will pensioners’ pensions be indexed by 6 per cent again?”
“Gas has already been as high as 29.27. So the people will swallow this too.”
“The problem was that ‘Moldovagaz’ gas came straight from the source. And under the banner of energy independence, they set up a scheme to extract high payments from citizens and siphon off money.”
“In October, they’ll have sorted the whole thing out bit by bit, and before you know it, they’ll be getting round to electricity.”
“We certainly lived better when gas was 4 lei; that’s why bread was 4 lei too, not 10 lei like it is now. When they raised the gas tariff to 30 lei, they raised the price of bread to 10 lei. The gas tariff has fallen to 14 lei, but the price of bread hasn’t gone down. And now we’re facing yet another rise in the price of bread.”
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