Moldovan energy regulatory agency provides clarifications on electricity pricing

The National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE) today said that regulated prices for electricity supply were set based on the annual costs forecast, which include both periods with higher prices and periods with lower prices for imported energy. Thus, tariffs are not modified according to monthly or seasonal fluctuations in purchase prices, but show an annual average.

The clarifications were made in the context of recent public statements regarding the price of electricity purchased by JSC Energocom and the alleged lack of response from the institution concerning the adjustment of tariffs for consumers.

According to the methodology, ANRE intervenes to adjust regulated prices only in situations where there is a deviation larger than 5 per cent from the supply cost included in the price, a deviation which must be confirmed by the real financial data of the regulated supplier.

‘’Therefore, a low price in one month is not sufficient to automatically trigger a price cut, as any adjustment is made based on an objective, transparent and thoroughly justified analysis,’’ emphasized ANRE.

ANRE noted that it constantly monitored the real costs incurred by regulated suppliers and when there are clear premises for adjustment - either upwards or downwards - the institution will intervene, even ex officio, according to legal competencies. At the same time, ANRE rejected claims suggesting that decisions regarding prices had an electoral or arbitrary nature.

Energocom today informed that, in last May, it had purchased about 318 thousand MWh of electricity, both from internal sources and imports. The weighted average price was 106.60 euros/MWh.