The natural gas market in the Republic of Moldova is experiencing a decline in trading volumes, while prices remain higher than on some European markets. According to a report by the Energy Community, gas volumes traded on the BRM EST platform fell by 72% in the first half of 2026, while prices averaged approximately €5/MWh above quotations on the Greek market, BANI.MD reports.
The data show that 57 GWh of natural gas was traded on the BRM EST platform in the first half of 2026, compared with 203.3 GWh during the reference period. In absolute terms, the market lost 146.3 GWh in trading volume.
Paradoxically, although the amount of gas traded declined, the number of transactions increased from 87 to 245. This trend indicates a fragmentation of trading activity, with more transactions but significantly smaller average volumes.
Another finding in the report concerns price differences between the Moldovan and regional markets. Between January 2025 and June 2026, gas traded on BRM EST was, on average, €5.01/MWh more expensive than gas traded on Greece’s EnExGroup platform in the day-ahead market segment.
For 1,000 MWh, this difference amounts to approximately €5,010. However, the comparison reflects the difference between exchange quotations and does not demonstrate that every consumer in the Republic of Moldova paid this additional amount. Final prices also include other components, such as transmission, distribution, and supply costs.
The report also shows that spot transactions on BRM EST took place on 73.8% of days in the first half of 2026, compared with 48.4% during the same period in 2025. Meanwhile, the share of the five most active trading days fell from 76.3% to 30.6% of total volume, suggesting a more even distribution of trading activity.
A contraction was also recorded in the forward-contract segment, where volumes fell from 549.4 GWh to just 10.6 GWh.