Energy Minister Victor Parlicov had a meeting with experts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, during which he gave details about the mechanisms being finalized to improve energy efficiency - the Residential Energy Efficiency Fund and the Super ESCO program for public buildings.

The Minister of Energy reaffirmed that investments in energy efficiency pay back in a few years, but subsidies for individuals or state support mechanisms for buildings owned by different public authorities are needed. The aim of the dialog is to include the new Financing Mechanism for Resilience and Sustainability in Energy Efficiency in the investment priorities, Victor Parlicov pointed out. In this context, the official also mentioned the future program of vouchers for household appliances, supported by the EU through UNDP Moldova, which from next year would also be supported from the state budget.

The agenda also included the smart meter initiative and the prospect of switching to differentiated day/night tariffs to help balance load curves. Up to 35 thousand smart meters are to be installed in the coming months to study consumer behavior and change consumption habits. The data gathered will help formulate new policies.

The IMF mission is led by Clara Mira and will end on October 6.