ISW: Ukraine offers coal to Moldova’s Transnistria in exchange for electricity

Jan 26, 2025 - 19:00

isw ukraine offers coal moldova's transnistria exchange electricity moldovan president maia sandu arriving kyiv train 25 2025 during meeting ukrainian volodymyr zelenskyy counterpart discussed solutions transnistria's energy crisis reports news

During their meeting in Kyiv on 25 January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his Moldovan counterpart, Maia Sandu, discussed solutions for Transnistria’s energy crisis, ISW reports.

Transnistria, Moldova’s easternmost narrow strip of land, is a landlocked breakaway region under de facto Russian control. Russian “peacekeepers” have been deployed there since the 1990s, after the Russian army intervened in Moldova’s conflict, siding against Moldovan forces trying to reclaim the region. After Ukraine halted Russian gas transits this year, Russia, despite having alternative routes, cut gas supplies to Transnistria. This move aimed to create instability in Moldova by shifting blame for the gas cuts onto Moldova and Ukraine.

During a joint press conference, Zelenskyy offered to supply Transnistria with coal at reduced prices or free of charge in exchange for electricity. He also proposed sending Ukrainian specialists to help increase the Transnistrian power plant’s electricity output beyond its domestic needs, enabling it to supply power to both Moldova and Ukraine.

According to Zelenskyy, this cooperation could reduce electricity prices throughout Moldova by 30%.

ISW reports that Transnistrian authorities have previously rejected similar Moldovan and Ukrainian assistance offers, preferring arrangements where Moscow provides just enough gas to cover the breakaway republic’s domestic electricity needs.

Ukrainian and Moldovan officials noted that Russia is attempting to use the manufactured gas crisis to influence Moldovan public opinion ahead of the Summer 2025 parliamentary elections.

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