October 22, 2025, Chișinău – The government’s EcoVoucher Program has offered a new opportunity this October for families with children and elderly persons to replace outdated, energy-consuming appliances with new, energy-efficient ones. During the session held between October 3–19, 2025, another 1,967 families benefited from vouchers to purchase new household appliances.

The majority of vouchers were redeemed by families with two children – 1 656. In addition, 311 vouchers were used by households consisting of elderly persons over the age of 63. The beneficiaries were selected based on eligibility criteria and data registered on the platform compensatii.gov.md.

In this session, beneficiary families purchased 952 refrigerators and 1 015 washing machines with high energy efficiency ratings through the EcoVoucher Program. Replacing old appliances with new, energy-efficient ones helps reduce electricity consumption and can lower household energy bills by at least half.

“The program is already delivering tangible results — more and more families are managing to significantly reduce their energy consumption and use the savings for other essential household needs. With each session, we aim to expand the program’s impact and provide direct support to families in need of practical solutions for cutting energy expenses and improving everyday comfort. The recently concluded session focused on families with two children and households with elderly persons, reaffirming our commitment to consistently supporting different population groups and making the energy transition accessible to all,” said Ion Muntean, Director of the National Center for Sustainable Energy (CNED).

“We are pleased to see how the EcoVoucher Program directly supports families with children and elderly persons in Moldova. The program provides practical solutions for reducing energy costs and improving household comfort while also promoting energy efficiency and environmental protection. We are proud to support initiatives that bring tangible benefits to both people and society as a whole,” stated Kamilla H. Kolshus, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Royal Norwegian Embassy Office in Chișinău.“

“The EcoVoucher Programme is a hands-on programme with immediate energy saving effects. Participating households are guided towards understanding what a Kilowatt hour (kWh) is, how to read the new EU efficiency label and how much they can actually save on their energy bills. The households also become ambassadors of an energy transition towards less electricity consumption, less demand for the country and less CO2 for the climate.” noted Christian Borchard, GIZ Implementation Manager of the E4M Component funded by Norway.

Each voucher, worth 6,000 MDL, covers up to 70% of the cost of a new refrigerator or washing machine and can be used in the network of partner stores. Beneficiaries benefit from free delivery and collection of old appliances for recycling.

Beneficiaries can purchase refrigerators (including those with integrated freezers, energy classes A, B, C, or D) and A-class washing machines under the program. All appliances meet EU energy efficiency criteria and CE conformity standards.

So far, approximately 39,000 families across the Republic of Moldova have benefited from EcoVoucher Program support for large household appliances. In the 2025 edition, funded by Norway, more than 24,700 vouchers have already been redeemed.

More information about the program, the list of partner stores, and steps for voucher use is available at www.ecovoucher.md [1]. Eligible households can check voucher availability on verificarevoucher.cned.gov.md.

The EcoVoucher Program was developed by the Government of the Republic of Moldova with the support of the European Union. This edition of the Household Appliances Voucher Program is implemented by the National Center for Sustainable Energy within the framework of the project “Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for Moldova” (E4M). E4M is a project implemented by GIZ together with the Government of the Republic of Moldova, financed by the Government of Germany and co-financed by the European Union, Norway, and Denmark. The current edition of the Household Appliances Voucher Program is financed by Norway.