A large part of Moldova was hit with a power outage yesterday, after Russia bombed critical power infrastructure across Ukraine. According to Tatiana Burca of Moldova Agro, the impact on the packhouses and sorting line was minimal: “The outage lasted between three to six hours and the effect was mostly psychological, as we were in the dark, people were scared for their children. But the harvest has been completed and the packhouses and sorting lines saw a minimal delay, nothing that will severely impact operations.”
Burca explains that even for the cold chambers, the power outage did not bring any huge issues. “When the power outage lasts for only a few hours, the temperatures do not go up to a degree that it will damage the product. Once the power was back up, operations resumed as normal,” she concluded.
Iurie Fala, executive director of Moldova Fruct, adds that energy will be more expensive as a result: “Some of the packhouses were able to still have power thanks to diesel generators. However not all packhouses had this convenience. However I’ve not heard anything from our members regarding damages. What will be important is the fact that energy prices are now skyrocketing. Ukraine can no longer supply us with their own energy, so it has to be imported from Romania at very high prices. We hope the situation is resolved soon, as this will impact produce exporters in Moldova.”
For more information:
Tatiana Burca
Moldova Agro
Tel: +373 60602222
Email: tburca@moldovaagro.com