Moldova eyes Ukrainian gas as Kyiv reopens exports
Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tofan said he is considering importing natural gas from Ukraine and will raise the idea during a planned visit to Kyiv. The move follows the Ukrainian government's decision on 7 October to partially lift a wartime ban on gas exports, allowing producers to sell up to 15% of their monthly output abroad.
Key points
- Ukraine's Cabinet on 7 October approved a partial reopening of natural gas exports, the first such move since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
- Producers will be allowed to sell abroad up to 15% of the gas they extracted in the previous month, with the energy ministry approving monthly export volumes.
- The export mechanism will run from 1 March to 30 November each year; subsidized household and heating tariffs are extended to 31 March.
- Moldovan PM Vasile Tofan said Ukraine has gas surpluses and that imports could be cheaper due to lower transport costs.
- Tofan is planning a visit to Kyiv to discuss possible purchases, with a date not yet announced.
- The volumes under discussion amount to roughly 500 million cubic meters, to be bought at market prices.
- Tofan said Russian gas is not an option for Moldova, in part because Ukraine no longer allows Russian gas to transit its territory.
Why it matters
Ukraine is lifting a wartime ban on gas exports for the first time since the 2022 full-scale invasion, signaling a shift toward treating itself as a potential supplier rather than only a transit country. A neighboring state historically dependent on Russian gas is publicly exploring Ukrainian supply as an alternative. Kyiv is pairing the export opening with continued subsidized household and heating tariffs through the end of the heating season and a regulated quota mechanism to keep domestic energy security intact.
What happened
On 7 October, the Ukrainian Cabinet approved a partial reopening of exports of domestically produced natural gas, ending a ban that had been in place since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. Under the new rules, gas producers will be allowed to sell abroad up to 15% of the gas they extracted in the previous month. The Ministry of Energy will approve a monthly list of companies and export volumes by the 12th of each month, based on data from the Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine (Operator HTS Ukraine) on actual injections the previous month. The mechanism will apply from 1 March to 30 November each year. Gas is to be sold at specialized trading sessions, likely on the Ukrainian Energy Exchange. The government also kept existing subsidized gas prices for households and heating producers in place until 31 March, the end of the heating season. Vice Prime Minister and Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal said Ukraine has enough gas to get through the winter.
In response, Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tofan said Moldova should consider buying gas from Ukraine and will raise the issue during a planned visit to Kyiv, for which no date has yet been set. Tofan said Ukraine has gas surpluses and that imports could be cheaper for Moldova thanks to lower transportation costs. He put the volumes under discussion at roughly 500 million cubic meters and said the gas would be bought at market prices, adding that long-term contracts of three to five years could help negotiate a lower price. Tofan repeated that Russian gas is not an option, noting that Ukraine no longer allows Russian gas to transit its territory.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian outlets frame the export decision as a response to a documented surplus in the commercial segment of the domestic gas market, and emphasize the safeguards attached to it: the 15% monthly production quota, the energy ministry's monthly approval of exporters and volumes, and the simultaneous extension of subsidized household and heating tariffs until 31 March. The vice prime minister's assurance that stocks are sufficient to complete the heating season is presented as confirmation that reopening exports is compatible with energy security.
Background
Ukraine banned exports of domestically produced natural gas at the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. Moldova had historically relied on Russian gas transiting through Ukraine; that transit is no longer permitted, removing a previously available supply route. Moldova currently buys gas on exchange markets, and Tofan has described a mix of medium- and long-term contracts with spot purchases as the most resilient procurement model. Pro-Russian former Moldovan President Igor Dodon, leader of the Party of Socialists, has periodically called for resuming gas purchases from Russia.