Moldova Speeds Up Construction of Trump-Named Power Line

The Straseni Power Station in Moldova / Foto: energie.gov.md Moldova’s government on Wednesday approved a draft law declaring the construction of a high-voltage power line linking Moldova with Romania a national public utility, allowing acquisition of land and other procedures required for the project to be accelerated. The 400-kilovolt line will be about 190 kilometres long, with around 70 kilometres on Moldovan territory and 120 in Romania, according to government officials. It is expected to strengthen Moldova’s integration with Romania and the wider European electricity market. Construction of the new power line is backed by a $130 million investment from the US and is expected to be completed in 2032. The US embassy in Chisinau meanwhile announced on Monday that the planned line will be named the “Trump Liberty Line”, making it the latest infrastructure project to bear the name of the US President. Moldovan authorities have stressed that the project will reduce vulnerability to energy pressure from Russia. “This is a very important project for Moldova’s energy security … and we are grateful to the American side for its support,” Prime Minister Vasile Tofan said during Wednesday’s government meeting. Moldova, one of Europe’s poorest countries and an EU candidate, relies heavily currently on electricity imports from Romania and Ukraine. But Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure have repeatedly disrupted regional electricity supplies in recent years, exposing Moldova’s vulnerability to instability and underscoring the need for stronger and more reliable connections, particularly with Romania. There has been no significant critical reaction in either Moldova or Romania to the planned name of the new power line connecting the two countries. The announcement has attracted little public controversy, with attention focused instead on the project’s potential to strengthen Moldova’s energy security. Moldova meanwhile joins a number of other countries where local infrastructure projects have been associated with Trump’s name, as governments seek to highlight ties with the US administration. In Eastern Europe, other examples include a planned Donald Trump Romanian-American Friendship Park in Bucharest, Romania, which is expected to be inaugurated early next year, and a proposed US military base in Poland that was previously promoted under the name “Fort Trump”.