- EBRD Managing Director Matteo Patrone visits Chisinau after Moldova EU candidacy moves forward
- Patrone will underscore the EBRD’s support for Moldova in the wake of the war on Ukraine
- Moldova’s energy security is at heart of discussions with government officials
Matteo Patrone, Managing Director for Eastern Europe and the Caucasus at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), visits Chisinau this week. He will underscore the EBRD’s support for Moldova - in the wake of the war on Ukraine and Friday’s European Commission recommendation to grant Moldova candidate status to join the EU – and discuss how to enhance the country’s energy security.
Moldova has welcomed nearly half a million refugees from neighbouring Ukraine since the Russian invasion there on 24 February. Many have moved on but 90,000 have stayed in this country of 2.7 million people. The country is highly dependent on imported natural gas, currently all imported from Russia via Ukraine, which accounts for nearly 30 per cent of its energy mix.
To address the impact of the war on the region, the EBRD put together a €2 billion Resilience and Livelihoods Framework to help Ukraine and neighbouring countries withstand the challenges. This framework ranges from restructuring and emergency liquidity support for enterprises and recovery support for small and medium-sized enterprises to support for energy security.
In Moldova’s case, the EBRD is working closely with the government on boosting energy security, both through diversifying supplies and a commitment to step up investments in projects that promote Moldova’s green agenda.
During his three-day visit, Mr Patrone will meet Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita, cabinet ministers, officials from the National Bank of Moldova and existing and potential business partners including local banks and Danube Logistics, the operator of Giurgiulesti International Free Port.
The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Moldova and, to date, has invested more than €1.5 billion in the country through 154 projects. It has also provided advisory services to more than 1,000 Moldovan firms to help them improve performance and grow.
Its focus in Moldova is on creating an environment that supports private sector activity, promoting European standards across sectors and regional integration to bring domestic producers closer to their markets, as well as developing efficient and sustainable public utilities which have a direct impact on people’s lives.
