Transdniestria extends state of economic emergency until May 18
TIRASPOL. April 16 (Interfax) - The Supreme Council of the unrecognized Transdniestrian Moldovan Republic extended the state of economic emergency until May 18 at a special meeting on Thursday.
"Extending the state of economic emergency is not a formality but an essential mechanism of operative control in conditions of uncertainty," Transdniestrian Supreme Council Deputy Chairman, Economic Committee head Alexander Korshunov said.
The Supreme Council approved the respective order by Transdniestrian leader Vadim Krasnoselsky. The order notes that the decision amid the current severe general economic crisis and the ongoing deterioration of socioeconomic indicators caused by a substantial decline in gas supply.
The order establishes a series of emergency measures and restrictions, including rationing energy consumption, prioritizing funding for measures to preserve the lives and health of citizens, and efforts towards the prevention and mitigation of the consequences of the gas shortage.
"Transdniestria is facing two main challenges today, namely unstable gas supply and external economic pressure," Korshunov said.
"First of all, the emergency allows the executive authorities to respond immediately to any change in the gas situation without waiting for long legislative procedures to be completed. We are distributing resources in a way that prioritizes gas supply to residential buildings, schools and hospitals. Secondly, this is about providing social benefits. Now that budget revenue is depleting, the emergency allows us to distribute spending in accordance with our priorities," he said.
"We are intentionally freezing many development programs and investments so that we can spend every ruble we have on salaries, pensions and benefits in the fullest amount," Korshunov said.
"The emergency is a mode of manual control of resources aimed at preventing a humanitarian catastrophe and to maintain social stability until external conditions normalize," he said.
Transdniestria introduced a state of economic emergency on December 11, 2024, for 30 days due to a risk of ceasing Russian gas supplies, which happened on January 1, 2025.
Since then, the state of emergency was extended five times and lifted only on June 8. It was reinstated on December 18, 2025 for 90 days following a reduction in gas supply. The state of emergency was extended for 30 days in March, and for another 30 days now.
There was no gas supply to Transdniestria in January 2025. Hungarian MET Gas and Energy Marketing AG has been supplying gas to Transdniestria since February 1, and various companies with Russian capital, which operate in the UAE, are paying for the deliveries. Gas supply has shrunk from 2 million cubic meters to 1 million cubic meters per day since November 2025, causing the new crisis.
Some energy-intensive enterprises had to curtail production and announce downtime, and hot water supply to residential buildings has stopped. Since then, gas supply to Transdniestria has been unstable, due to late payments to MET from the UAE. The crisis in the Middle East exacerbated the situation.
