The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will be moving up a gear from 2026 when EU importers are expected to purchase and surrender CBAM certificates to cover the embedded emissions of imported carbon-intensive goods.

Regulations will impact Energy Community contracting parties such as Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and the West Balkans countries either through their exports of electricity or other energy-intensive products.

ICIS journalist Aura Sabadus has spoken to Peter Pozsgai, lead of the CBAM Readiness Task Force at the Energy Community, to understand the exact implications for both EU importers and Energy Community contracting parties.

Transmission capacity on the Romanian-Moldovan border was overbid at quarterly auctions held in November as traders have been competing to sell gas to Moldova this winter.

Only five years ago such a scenario would have been unthinkable. The country was fully reliant on Russian gas and depended heavily on Russian-controlled Transnistria for electricity supplies.

After multiple energy crises triggered by Russia since then, Moldova has fast-tracked the implementation of EU-aligned reforms. Within less than six months it will start its gradual liberalisation of the gas sector and by 2027 it expects to couple its electricity spot market with that of the EU.

However, as Constantin Borosan, director of energy regulator ANRE tells ICIS journalist Aura Sabadus, there are still many challenges ahead. These include ensuring the correct framework for functional power and gas markets, expanding the border gas capacity with Romania and Ukraine to facilitate regional transit and thinking long-term about the future of Transnistria’s energy arrangements.

The EU is moving closer towards the development of a real-time electricity market thanks to critical tools such as the Platform for the International Coordination of Automated Frequency Restoration and Stable System Operation, (PICASSO) and, more recently, the launch of quarter hourly trading intervals.

Somewhat like Picasso’s art, the platform is a bold attempt to harmonise the EU’s diverse markets and bring efficiency in an ecosystem increasingly dominated by renewable generation, which will require more real-time responses as this capacity expands.

However, in recent months, it has raised many concerns because of price volatility, with some countries delaying its adoption. Italy, however, seems to be moving in opposite direction, preparing to rejoin after pulling out.

In this podcast, energy market specialists Giovanni Musella and Tatjana Jovanovic talk to Aura Sabadus about the problems that have been flagged by participants and the solutions proposed to smooth out operations.