Expert-Grup

Early Movers: Thermal Retrofit of Bălți's Tallest Building, a Model of Energy Efficiency for Moldova

Wednesday, 11 June 20253332 views
Early Movers: Thermal Retrofit of Bălți's Tallest Building, a Model of Energy Efficiency for Moldova

Automatically translated summary. The full article is available in Romanian.

The Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” presented the results of the thermal retrofit of a 16-storey residential block in Bălți, the tallest in the city. The event, backed by the Dutch and Slovak embassies, SlovakAid and the Energy Community Secretariat, brought together officials, ambassadors, development partners, banks, civil society and residents.

The “Early Movers” pilot project was the first complete thermal retrofit of a block of this size in Moldova, covering the building, facade, roof and basement for 80 apartment owners. Total funding of MDL 10 million was split 80% from development partners, including EUR 375,000 from SlovakAid, and 20% from residents, who raised their share through a bank loan taken by the homeowners’ association, a national first.

In the second half of the 2024–2025 heating season, heat consumption fell by 20%, and by up to 50% for some residents. A drop of at least 35% is forecast for the next season. Adrian Lupușor drew three lessons: efficiency investments pay back quickly, banks must be involved in co-financing, and homeowners’ associations are crucial. In 2024 the Government launched a residential energy efficiency fund (FEERM) with a budget of MDL 1.4 billion.

View the original article in Romanian