France will provide technical and financial assistance for the modernization of the energy and railway sectors of Moldova in the amount of over 60 million euros.
This was stated at a press conference in Chisinau on Tuesday by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Andrei Spinu and Director General of the French Development Agency (AFD) Rémy Rioux. As Andrei Spinu noted, in particular, the parties signed today in Chisinau a Memorandum of Understanding on the common interests of cooperation in the energy and railway sectors through technical and financial assistance programs. The document is intended to support the reforms in the field of railways and the modernization of the energy system of Moldova and provides for the provision of technical assistance to the State Enterprise Moldelectrica and the State Enterprise "Railway of Moldova" for 800 thousand euros. The money will be allocated by AFD based on the signed memorandum. As the Deputy Prime Minister specified, at the same time, 400 thousand euros will be directed to energy security, in particular, to conduct 2 studies of post-synchronization of Moldelectrica transport networks with the network of the European network of operators of the electricity transmission system ENTSO-E. To this end, a Catalog of activities necessary for the proper functioning of post-synchronization and the identification of new projects to be included in the development plan for transport transmission networks will be developed. The project will be implemented in partnership with RTE France. At the same time, another 400 thousand euros are provided for the reform and reorganization of the Moldovan Railways. Andrei Spinu stressed that for the first time in our country, a forum dedicated to the railway transport industry will be organized, where several topics will be discussed, including the analysis of the rail freight market, the digitalization of railways and the investment plan for the railway, which will be financed by the French government. “We hope for the restoration and modernization of the section of the Iasi-Chisinau railway, which will include the European gauge,” he said. The Deputy Prime Minister said that he also agreed with the AFD CEO on behalf of the Moldovan government additional financial assistance of 60 million euros to support the energy and railway sectors. “These investments in the form of technical and financial assistance will increase the energy security of our country and help restore the Moldovan Railway and the country's electricity sector in accordance with European standards. The state-owned companies Moldelectrica and Moldovan Railway will become more efficient and modern, and best practices will be introduced in these areas with the support of France,” said Andrei Spinu. The head of the AFD, Rémy Rioux, stressed that Europe in general and France in particular will continue to support Moldova and the country's authorities, who intend to implement complex, ambitious reforms in the context of the crisis. According to him, the French Development Agency will make every effort to help the government through technical and financial assistance programs. “For the state-owned enterprises Moldelectrica and Moldovan Railway, the first technical assistance program is envisaged, we will implement specific investment projects that will help structural transformation of the economy, will contribute to the deep transformation of the country, its rapprochement with the EU, through the implementation of specific projects that bring more benefits to citizens. All these actions mark the beginning of our cooperation and will be visible to the citizens of Moldova in their daily lives,” said Rémy Rioux. // 24.05.2022- InfoMarket.
