EU, United Nations Development Programme start training operators of biomass centres

Chisinau, 7 November /MOLDPRES/ - The thermal biomass centres from over 100 public institutions are tested and prepared for the cold season. The operators are trained by a team of experts contracted by the programme, Approaching the impact of the energy crisis in Moldova, financed by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Moldova, in partnership with the Infrastructure and Regional Development Ministry (MIDR).       

One hundred thermal stations are to be subjected to the procedure of verification till the end of this year. In this respect, 69 thermal nun-functional stations were identified and which has various technical damages. ‘’All infrastructure of the solid bio-fuel sector in Moldova was created with the support of the European Union and the government of Japan. Presently, the biomass thermal stations from the public institutions have a capacity set of 70 MW and can replace the consumption of up 20 million cubic metres of natural gas. Thus, costs of about 20 million dollars with natural gas can be avoided and this money will remain in the country at the producers of bio-fuels,’’ the state secretary for energy at MIDR, Constantin Borosan, said.        

To protect the forest biomass biodiversity from use for illegal and abusive energy, and to ensure the quality of solid bio-fuels on market, the programme will support the re-accreditation of the laboratory of testing the quality of bio-fuels, the regulation of the ways of placement on market and of verifying the quality. Investments are envisaged in centres for training operators, including of those of biomass thermal stations. For the European Union, the speeding up of the adoption of renewable sources and the energy efficiency stay the best solution for the energy security and the achievement of the climate objectives.  

„About 75 producers of solid bio-fuels are registered in Moldova, with a capacity of annual production of about 30,000 tons. In the present energy context, it is even more important to ensure the availability and quality of the solid bio-fuels for consumers,’’ a composition manager at UNDP Moldova, Mihail Lupu, said.    

With a budget of 10 million euros, the programme, Approaching the impact of the energy crisis in Moldova, contributes to the fight against the climate changes through reducing the impact of the energy crisis and to the attenuation of the burden of the energy poverty.  

Photo: UNDP