Tiraspol (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Breakaway Moldovan region of Transdniestria faces ongoing power cuts after losing Russian gas supplies following Ukraine’s halt of gas transit.
Authorities in the breakaway Moldovan region of Transdniestria stated that power cuts will continue in the region, which has been stripped of Russian gas supplies following Ukraine’s decision not to expand an agreement for Russian gas transit. Transdniestrian officials stated the first rolling power outages were executed on 3 Jan 2025 evening.
As reported by Reuters, the official Telegram news channel of Transdniestria’s government expressed power supplies would be suspended for three hours between 2 p.m. (1200 GMT) and 5 p.m. in many regions. The self-proclaimed leader of the enclave, Vadim Krasnoselsky, had earlier expressed power cuts were unavoidable.
On 4 Jan 2025, Krasnoselsky said on Telegram that the power cuts could be expanded to four hours on Sunday. Russia denies using gas as a weapon to coerce Moldova and blames Kyiv for refusing to renew the gas transit deal.
Why is Transdniestria experiencing rolling power outages?
Russian gas supply to Europe through Ukraine was cut off on January 1, 2025, as a five-year transit deal between Russia and Ukraine came to an end. A five-year gas transit agreement had started in 2019 but ended since Ukraine declined to extend it because of its undeterred war against Russia. Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said that the country had stopped the transit of Russian gas, marking a drastic change in the energy balance.
Transnistria is a breakaway Russian-speaking region that declared independence from Moldova in the early 1990s. The availability of energy supply and economic stability have been very challenging since the conflict started between Russia and Ukraine.
The declining Russian subsidies and support are placing Transnistria in a tight spot between integration with Moldova and maintaining its proclaimed independence. The region’s leadership is thus under pressure to navigate these challenges amid changing geopolitical dynamics.
