The construction of the 600 MW back-to-back Vulcanesti station is no longer technically and economically justified, concludes a study by the World Bank, presented at a round table at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development (MIDR).
The study evaluates the technical and economic feasibility of the investment in the construction of the back-to-back (BtB) station from Vulcanesti of 600 MW, given that its major benefit, of integration into the single European electricity market, has disappeared, along with emergency synchronization of the power systems of Ukraine and Moldova with the European Continental Energy System ENTSO-E.
According to the authors, the analyzes show a negative net present value of at least 272 million euros, which indicates that the potential benefits of the project do not exceed the costs, a fact that no longer justifies its implementation.
At the same time, the authors argue that the alternative investment in the construction of the new 400 KW Balti-Suceava overhead power line (LEA), which, in addition to showing a positive net value of at least 29 million euros, will also have a significant role in ensuring the security of electricity supply. At the same time, the analysis of the study confirmed the necessity and importance of the construction, in the future, of the LEA of 400 KW, Chisinau-Vulcanesti, regardless of the existence or non-existence of the BtB station.
According to Constantin Borosan, secretary of state at MIDR, the circumstances created at the regional level accelerated the synchronization of the European energy system and, in this context, it was necessary to identify a technical alternative for the back-to-back station from Vulcanesti, the construction of which is no longer economically justified.
“This will allow us reallocating the investment to carry out other important energy security projects,” Constantin Borosan summarized. (Moldpres/Business World Magazine)