The Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline has become fully functional and may soon start delivering natural gas.
Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development of Moldova, Andrei Spinu, announced this, noting that he was informed about this officially today during a meeting with the General Director of Transgaz Romania, Ion Sterian, and the administrator of Eurotransgaz Nicolae Faranga Dan. At the meeting, the Romanian side officially informed about the completion of the construction of the Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline, which connects gas networks in Romania and Moldova, providing our country's access to the European energy market. The gas pipeline was extended both from the side of Moldova with a section of the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline, and from the side of Romania, with the Onesti - Gheraesti - Letcani gas pipeline and two gas compressor stations. “Our country needs to diversify the sources of gas supplies, and this gas pipeline gives us this chance. The work on the gas pipeline has actually been completed on both sides, and we are planning the possibility of supplying gas through this pipeline in the near future,” said Andrei Spinu. The gas pipeline was completed in August 2020 and the expansion work on the Romanian side was completed in early October 2021. Transgaz România is the national gas transmission operator in the neighboring country and also owns the Moldovan gas transmission operator VestMoldTransgaz in charge of transporting gas on the section from the border to Chisinau. The Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline was built and financed by the Romanian operator Transgaz with money allocated by the European Union under the Romania-Ukraine-Moldova Joint Operational Program for 2007-2013. Earlier, the Romanian company Transgaz noted that the throughput capacity of the Iasi-Ungheni gas pipeline will increase from October 1, 2021, which will allow it to supply higher volumes of gas from Romania to Moldova. As InfoMarket reported earlier, the general director of the Romanian company Transgaz, Ion Sterian, said earlier that Romania would be able to supply Moldova with Russian gas in transit and indirectly replace the Ukrainian route of transportation / transit of Russian gas to Moldova with the Romanian route. According to him, from October 1 of this year, it will be possible to transport from 4.5 million to 6 million cubic meters of gas per day to Moldova. Thus, the gas pipeline will be able to provide about 75% of the average consumption in Moldova (including the Transnistrian region) or about 60% of the average consumption in the country during the cold season (including the Transnistrian region). The aim of the construction of the Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline was to increase Moldova’s energy security by diversifying the sources and directions of natural gas supplies to Moldova. Transgaz notes that the project will also help Moldova integrate into future major gas infrastructure projects, such as the trans-Adriatic gas pipeline or TAP. This gas pipeline will be able to pump gas from Central European gas hubs and transport gas from the Black Sea fields. // 04.10.2021 – InfoMarket
