“The authorities will be able to make an urgent decision to turn off street lights, reduce consumption in certain institutions and even temporarily cut off electricity for the population during certain hours,” Novak said at a meeting of the Economy, Budget and Finance Commission.
Ion Andronicus, head of the department at the Energy Ministry, made it clear that the emergency situation in the energy sector is necessary, among other things, in order to urgently purchase the necessary materials and equipment due to the disconnection of the Isaccea-Vulcanesti line.
“Moldelectrica and Ukrenergo have always had and have material stocks. The sensitive element is that the fault occurred at a specific point of the network – at the penultimate support pole before the support across the Danube River. These points have equipment and network components that are less common and more sensitive compared to other sections of the line,” Andronik explained.
We will remind, at the request of the Ministry of Energy and on the proposal of the government, the Parliament will today consider the introduction of an emergency situation in the energy sector.
Speaker Igor Grosu was forced to change plans and interrupt his visit to Croatia, where the parliamentary summit of the Three Seas Initiative is taking place, returning to work directly from the Chisinau airport.
The decision is based on risk analysis, the need for urgent intervention to protect critical infrastructure and the mobilization of additional resources.
According to authorities, Russian military attacks on infrastructure in southern Ukraine led to the decommissioning of the 400 kV Vulcanesti-Isaccea overhead power line. The incident occurred at 19:15 on March 23. Technical defects identified in Ukraine in the conductor support elements indicate a serious short circuit requiring specialized intervention.
According to the National Crisis Management Center, the line is the main artery of import to the ENTSO-E system, a European network that coordinates operators of electricity transport systems in Europe. It usually supplies between 60% and 70% of the consumption of the right bank of the Republic of Moldova. Currently, flows along this path are 0 MW, creating a deficit estimated at 350-400 MW during peak hours starting tomorrow. Although the system is currently functioning relatively stable due to the use of 110 kV lines in isolated mode and the reconnection of the 330 kV Balti – Dnestrovsk line, these resources are limited and can only cover a part of the national demand.
