Iași-Ungheni pipeline construction is 70% completed on Moldova’s territory and the pipeline will be operational in July, said Thursday the Economy Minister of Moldova, Valeriu Lazăr. According to the press release of Moldovan Economy Ministry, in the near future the work will begin to undercross Prut and to construct the gas metering station.

Construction work on the Iași-Ungheni gas pipeline, that will connect Romania and Moldova, was inaugurated on 27 August 2013 on the left side of Prut river, in the presence of Prime Ministers Victor Ponta and Iurie Leancă, and of Günther Oettinger, EU Commissioner for Energy.The  43.2 km pipeline will transport 1.5 billion cubic meters per year.

Agerpres news agency writes that, to use the pipeline to full capacity, Moldova will have to build a pipe between Ungheni and Străşeni, fed by Iași-Ungheni. The investment required for this extension stands 60 million euros, at least, and a potential timeframe for implementation extends over the next five years. According to the Moldovan Prime Minister Iurie Leancă, EBRD will provide Moldova grants to finance a feasibility study for the extension of gas pipeline to Chișinău, a goal announced in Bucharest since the summer of 2013.