Municipal Green Bonds and Energy Performance Contracts as Drivers of Public-Private Partnership in the Renovation of Public Buildings in the Republic of Moldova

Abstract

This study examines the integration of two innovative financial instruments — Municipal Green Bonds (MGB) and Energy Performance Contracts (EPC) implemented through Energy Service Companies (ESCO) — as drivers of sustainable Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in the renovation of public buildings in the Republic of Moldova. The aim of the research is to substantiate an integrated MGB-ESCO model capable of mobilizing private institutional capital for an estimated investment gap of 9.1 billion euros. The study adopts a qualitative methodology combining literature review (2018-2025), document analysis of EU and national legal frameworks, and case-study analysis of recent Moldovan projects — the Moldova Energy Efficiency Project, the Energy Vulnerability Reduction Fund, the Chișinău kindergarten modernization project, and the pioneering municipal bond issuances of Sîngera, Ceadâr-Lunga and Chișinău. Data sources include the National Bureau of Statistics, the World Bank, the European Commission and the Energy Community Secretariat. The findings demonstrate that, individually, ESCO contracts and Green Bonds face structural barriers — high cost of commercial capital and the shortage of bankable green projects with verifiable savings. Their integration within a blended finance architecture, however, generates a self-reinforcing renovation cycle in which municipalities act as financial aggregators, ESCOs absorb the technical risk, and institutional investors gain access to verified green assets. On this basis, four strategic recommendations are formulated for Moldovan public authorities. UDC: 620.9:338.246.025(478-21); JEL: G18, H54, Q56, R51