Zelenskyy, Sandu discuss Ukrainian coal to ease Transnistria energy crisis

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Moldovan President Maia Sandu on Wednesday (8 January) discussed using Ukrainian coal to ease the energy crisis which has subjected Moldova’s separatist Transnistria region to blackouts and a heating shortage.

Pro-Russian Transnistria, which broke away from Moldova in the final days of Soviet rule, has long relied on supplies of Russian gas. But flows to the region through Ukraine were halted on 1 January after Ukraine refused to renew an agreement on allowing gas to transit through its territory.

“We are ready to assist Moldova, including with coal supplies,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address after discussing the crisis with Sandu by telephone.

He said the crisis stemmed from “Russia’s attempt to manipulate energy resources” to the detriment of Moldova’s pro-European government. He added that it was “crucial to maintain stability and provide all people in Moldova with the conditions to live peacefully”.

Sandu, in a statement issued on the presidential website, said the two leaders “agreed to identify common solutions to prevent the worsening of the humanitarian crisis … including through the use of alternative energy sources, such as coal”.

Ukrainian coal could be used to keep operating a thermal plant which provides electricity for the separatist region and also accounts for most of the power needs in government-controlled areas of Moldova.

Officials have already made the adjustment to enable the plant to operate on coal.

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen was due to hold talks on Thursday in both government-controlled Moldova and Transnistria. Finland currently chairs the 57-nation Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has long spearheaded efforts to resolve the separatist conflict.

Blackouts in Transnistria

Moldova is coping with the crisis because it has diversified its gas supplies and has been able to replace the electricity it used to buy from Transnistria with imports from Romania and domestic production.

But in Transnistria, the blackouts began on the first day of the new year. Since then, consumers have been increasingly left in the dark and without electricity, with blackouts now reaching eight hours a day.

The authorities in Chisinau have offered to help the Transnistrian region, but the Tiraspol regime unlil now has refused to cooperate. Daniel Vodă, the Moldovan government spokesman, said the Transnistrian side had rejected the offer of assistance and accused Chisinau of interfering in “internal affairs.”

The authorities in Transnistria are advising the population to use alternative sources of energy. “Stoves, solid fuel or liquid fuel boilers should become the main source of heat in private homes. An electric generator will also help to maintain the balance of consumption,” the Tiraspol authorities urged.

Moldova proposed to Russia’s Gazprom to continue natural gas supplies to Transnistria via the Trans-Balkan route (via Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania), but this proposal was ignored. It is interesting to note that Gazprom cut off gas supplies to Transnistria because of non-payment of a debt, not because of Ukraine’s decision to stop transit of Russian gas through its territory.

Putin’ strategy

According to analysts, Putin wants to take advantage of the situation.

Analyst Armand Goșu writes for the Romanian website Contributors.ro that Putin wants to punish the current leadership of Transnistria, which he believes has been too accommodating towards Chisinau.

“Tiraspol was too reasonable with Chisinau’s requests and did not convincingly try to escalate the situation when Moscow asked it to”, he said, referring to the recent presidential elections and an EU referendum that passed by a razor-thin margin.

According to Goșu, Putin wants to punish Transnistria’s leaders, the official “president” Vadim Krasnoselski and the de facto leader, billionaire Victor Gușan, founder of the “Sheriff” holding company that rules Transnistria.

“Their power must be weakened. A medium-term stake, however, is bringing a pro-Russian coalition to power in Chisinau, given that in the fall of this year, the date has not yet been set, there will be parliamentary elections in the Republic of Moldova,” Goșu added.

According to the analyst, Russia has been supplying Transnistria with free gas for many years, partly with the aim of corrupting Moldova. Transnistria used to produce electricity with Russian gas, for which it paid nothing, and sold it to Moldova. In this way, Transnistria obtained foreign currency without needing financial support from Moscow. But at the same time, the scheme of selling electricity lined the pockets of people like the Moldovan pro-Russian oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc, who was sanctioned by the West for destabilising Moldova to Russia’s benefit.

“By buying – at a good price, an offer impossible to refuse – the electricity produced in Transnistria, Chisinau has financed the separatist republic for decades, with the leaders of whom it has declared that it refuses to meet,” Goșu also said.

With additional reporting by Georgi Gotev

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