The Republic of Moldova joins the Local Implementation Project (LIP) to integrate its electricity spot market into the European market. This represents another important step towards the liberalization of the electricity market, but also towards its connection to the single European grid.

 

The project was launched by the market operators and electricity transmission and system operators from the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Romania, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to facilitate integration into the single European energy market.

 

On behalf of the Republic of Moldova, the Memorandum of Understanding with the other participants in this project was signed by the electricity transmission system operator Moldelectrica and the Electricity Market Operator (OPEM). On behalf of other countries, the following signed:

 

Ukraine: JSC Market Operator, NPC Ukrenergo;

Poland: PSE, TGE, EPEXSPOT, NordPool;

Hungary: HUPX, MAVIR;

Romania: Transelectrica, BRM, OPCOM;

Slovakia: OKTE, SEPS.

The Local Implementation Project aims to prepare the Moldovan energy market for integration into the European Day-ahead Energy Market (EDAM) and the European Intraday Market (IDM). The project objectives are to exchange information, improve the legal framework, but also to implement common organizational and technical solutions for integration into the EU market. The procedures, tools and processes necessary for the coupling of the electricity markets will be developed, tested and implemented, in agreement with the Nominated Market Operators (NEMOs) and Transmission System Operators (TSOs) of the Eastern European Capacity Calculation Region (EE CCR).

 

We recall that in February 2024, the Energy Market Operator M (OPEM), a subsidiary of the Romanian electricity market operator OPCOM, was designated as the electricity market operator of the Republic of Moldova. In March 2024, the National Agency for Energy Regulation (ANRE) granted the necessary license for the operation of OPEM.

 

The implementation of organized electricity markets will allow for short-term electricity trading, through the day-ahead (DAU) and intraday (IW) markets, offering the possibility of trading energy at hourly prices.

 

OPEM recently concluded public consultations on the procedures for registering and withdrawing participants in the organized electricity markets (DAU and IW), as well as the operational procedures for the operation of the Day-Ahead (DAU) and Intraday (IW) Electricity Markets.

 

This will strengthen the integration of a greater amount of energy from renewable sources into the national energy system and will allow for the implementation of differentiated tariffs depending on the time of consumption.

 

Also, the integration of the national market into the European network will facilitate electricity trading with partners in the European Union, increasing the liquidity of organized markets in Moldova, thus contributing to strengthening the energy security of the region and developing a more efficient and competitive common energy market, supporting the transition to a more sustainable energy sector.