The Workshop "Hydropower serving rural consumers" represent the opportunity to promote the microhydropower for rural consumers. During Workshop, the contributions of research-technology development groups all over the world are welcome and we are looking forward to fruitful discussions that may contribute in developing this field.

Workshop Chairman: Academician Dr.Sc.PhD Ion BOSTAN

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Having a high density of the population (about 140 hab/square km), only about 10% of afforested surfaces, and an economy based on the agriculture, the problem of environmental protection is a major one in the Republic of Moldova. As well, the high poverty level (according to the UNDP estimations the Republic of Moldova is the 117th in the world) is also a problem. Favorable climatic conditions and fertile soils have favored the development of the vegetable sector but this demands irrigation. At the same time, in Moldova the agricultural product processing industry is represented by small processing enterprises and is at the beginning of its way. In this context, the Project suggests the utilization of the new non-polluting technologies and systems for electrical or mechanical energy production (protected by 12 patents) which are necessary for various activities of farmers and small producers, and ensure poverty reduction and protection of environment.

The major goal of this Project is to develop engineering systems for flowing water kinetic energy conversion without dams on Nistru, Prut and Raut rivers, integrated with various technological systems. Development of cost-efficient micro hydro-power stations without building dams will guarantee financial support of the Project and will provide market stimulus that will work for the conservation of the river water ecological balance in the Republic of Moldova. The Project has transborder character because for the achievement of the objectives the partners will cooperate in order to obtain better solutions which will be applied in two countries (Republic of Moldova and Romania) and there will be permanent exchange of experience and information.

Therefore, the Project proposal seeks to solve the following problems:

• Partial provision of rural population with energy sources (electrical energy, water pumping for irrigation purposes, heating of buildings during the cold seasons);
• Poverty reduction of rural population by satisfying their energy needs with cheap energy and increasing harvest amounts by fields irrigation;
• Opening of new job places in rural regions by motivating the development of small enterprises for agricultural production processing;
• Protection of ecological balance of water environment.