The Comendant Family in Chișinău Replaced Their Washing Machine with Support from EcoVoucher and Is Saving on Their Energy Bill

The Comendant family from Chișinău, with three children, replaced their washing machine with a modern, energy-efficient model with support provided through the Government’s Household Appliance Voucher Programme (EcoVoucher). The new appliance uses less energy, has a larger capacity, and better meets the needs of a large family.

The Government’s EcoVoucher Programme is financially supported by the European Union and gives eligible households the opportunity to replace old household appliances with more energy-efficient models.

“I received an SMS and an email and read the email several times to make sure it was real and not an attempted fraud. After verifying the information, I started looking at the websites of participating stores and searching for a model that would suit us in terms of both features and price, even with EcoVoucher,” says Cornel Comendant.

The programme allows beneficiaries to choose between a washing machine and a refrigerator. The family chose to replace its washing machine and looked for a model that would meet the household’s needs.

After choosing the appliance, the Comendant family contacted the store to find out how to use the voucher. A photo of the old appliance and an identity document were required for the purchase, while the necessary documents were prepared by the store representative.

“I asked how I could make a purchase using EcoVoucher. They asked me for a photo of the old washing machine and my identity document. The manager prepared the documents very quickly. Then we arranged the delivery and collection of the old machine. On the agreed day, they came, delivered the new machine and replaced the old one,” explains the beneficiary.

For the Comendant family, one of the main advantages of the new appliance is its energy efficiency. The washing machine is more modern, has a larger capacity and consumes less energy.

The household consumes several hundred kWh of electricity per month, and the electricity bill reached MDL 1,800–2,000 in some months. The new appliance also allows the family to monitor its energy consumption, with the data available directly on their phone.

“It is incomparably more efficient. It is more spacious. What I used to wash in two cycles, I can now wash in one. It is a smart appliance and it shows me the consumption on my phone. For example, I can see that after several dozen washing cycles, the consumption was only a few kWh,” says Cornel Comendant.

For a family with three children, switching to a higher-capacity appliance with lower energy consumption means greater convenience in everyday use and more efficient energy consumption.

In the case of the Comendant family, the MDL 6,000 voucher covered 60% of the cost of the washing machine, with the remaining amount paid by the family. The support made it possible for the family to choose a more advanced model, which would otherwise have required a larger contribution from the household budget.

“EcoVoucher allowed me to make a larger purchase than I would normally have been able to make when replacing the washing machine. Basically, I was able to choose exactly the model I was looking for,” says Cornel Comendant.

The family considers the EcoVoucher Programme useful for households because it provides direct support for purchasing energy-efficient household appliances.

“I think it is one of the most useful programmes, especially for household consumers. There are many programmes aimed at entrepreneurs or specific categories of people, while there are fewer programmes for household consumers. I took part and received exactly what I wanted. From my point of view, it is a good and useful programme,” Cornel Comendant adds.

What does the EcoVoucher Programme offer?

The EcoVoucher Programme provides eligible households with financial support for purchasing energy-efficient household appliances. A voucher of up to MDL 6,000 can cover up to 70% of the cost of a refrigerator (classes A–D) or a washing machine (class A). This allows beneficiaries to choose quality household appliances that combine energy efficiency with durability and comply with European standards. The old appliance is collected free of charge for recycling.

Priority in the allocation of vouchers is given to families with two or more children, persons experiencing severe energy vulnerability, and households in which two persons over the age of 63 live.

The Household Appliance Voucher Programme was developed by the Government of the Republic of Moldova with financial support from the European Union. The current edition is implemented by the National Centre for Sustainable Energy within the “Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for Moldova” (E4M) project, implemented by GIZ together with the Government of the Republic of Moldova, financed by the Government of Germany and co-financed by the European Union, Norway and Denmark. The current edition of the Programme is financed by the European Union.