Moldovan government to help people get firewood at price similar to last year

Chisinau, 4 Aug. /MOLDPRES/- The government announced today that for the 2022-2023 cold season, household consumers will buy firewood at a price similar to last year. In order for the price of wood not to increase, the Government subsidized the Moldsilva Agency with over 64 million lei. People will be able to purchase wood directly from the forestry enterprise, the government's communication and protocol department has reported.

This year, the sale price of hard species wood will vary between 550 lei and 875 lei per square meter. For soft wood, prices will be between 350 and 475 lei per square meter. Forestry companies will only sell wood to households and public institutions, especially educational ones. Economic agents will not be able to buy firewood for sale from Moldsilva.

These are the main measures included in the Government's action plan for the supply of firewood for the cold period 2022-2023.

"For the Government of the Republic of Moldova, protecting the population, especially the most vulnerable, is the immediate priority. This plan aims at the fair and responsible consumption of firewood resources during the cold season, but also the correct distribution of firewood and the prevention of illegal forest cutting", said Dumitru Udrea, Secretary General of the Government.

The government will ensure access to firewood for consumers in the 658 thousand households in the country, which use traditional wood stoves as the main source of home heating. In the first installment of sales, October - November 2022, every household that is part of a socially-vulnerable group or represents a family that heats only with wood will be able to buy at a capped price up to 3 sterile meters. In the second tranche, December 2022 - January 2023, the Moldsilva Agency will additionally grant wood based on climatic conditions and available stocks.

According to the plan, wood deliveries from forestry enterprises to people's homes must take place only during the day, and transporters must have tax invoices in the name of the household owners who bought the wood, indicating the volume transported. Also, increased penalties for illegal cutting will be announced in the next period.

Annually, consumers use approximately 1 million sterile meters of wood during the cold season. In order to ensure the population's access to firewood, this year, the Moldsilva Agency will cover about 800 thousand sterile meters of the required volume. For this purpose, the Government has decided that the silvotechnical works in the national forest fund planned for the spring of 2023 will be carried out earlier.

"We understand that using wood from the national forest fund for heating cannot represent a permanent solution. This measure is rather an exception, given the energy crisis that the Republic of Moldova is going through at the moment. That is why the Government will develop an accelerated transition program towards the use of biomass harvested from the agricultural sector, including by expanding fast-growing plantations, in parallel with other measures aimed at increasing energy efficiency and capitalizing on renewable resources in households", said Dumitru Udrea.

Starting from the end of September, the volume of firewood available for sale will be displayed weekly by the Moldsilva Agency on the official pages of forestry enterprises. In a short time, the Government will additionally launch a green line dedicated to informing the population about the availability of wood stocks. Citizens will be able to use the green line to notify the authorities about illegal cutting or irregularities in the wood distribution process.

Photo: Government