Ryanair in Moldova: CUB VP Adrian Dulgher Pushes $20B Investment

Adrian Dulgher, CUB Vice President, engages Ryanair on affordable routes and sets out $20B strategy to attract international investment aimed to reduce debt.

CHISINAU, MOLDOVA, September 3, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- “Low-cost flights and real investment are not luxuries – they are the foundations of Moldova’s future.” — Adrian Dulgher, CUB Vice President

Adrian Dulgher, Vice President of the Coaliția pentru Unitate și Bunăstare (CUB) party, has set out a $20 billion strategy to attract international investment while opening high-level discussions with Ryanair to expand low-cost routes into Moldova. The initiative positions him as a reform leader ready to deliver growth and opportunity where the government has failed.

In recent talks, CUB Vice President Dulgher engaged directly with Ryanair’s Director of Airports and Commercial Finance, Ray Kelliher. “Ultimately Chișinău was unwilling to bring itself into a competitive position versus other European airports and as such we are not able to consider flights to Moldova at this time,” Kelliher said. He added that Ryanair is open to revisiting discussions later this year after the September elections, provided there is a change in approach.

At the same time, Dulgher highlighted Moldova’s deepening financial crisis. The 2025 budget projects revenues of 71 billion MDL, roughly $4.2 billion USD, against expenditures of 85.4 billion MDL, leaving a deficit of more than 4% of GDP. Over the past two years, Moldova’s external debt has climbed from $9.6 billion (≈160 billion MDL) to over $10.6 billion (≈176 billion MDL). Meanwhile, 1.5 billion MDL has been borrowed at 3% interest, while only 400 million MDL of European aid has been non-refundable.
Sources:
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/moldovas-parliament-passes-2025-budget-with-deficit-4-gdp-2024-12-26/
https://www.fitchratings.com/research/sovereigns/fitch-affirms-moldova-at-b-stable-outlook-07-03-2025
https://tradingeconomics.com/moldova/external-debt

“Loans are not achievements to celebrate while our young people continue to leave the country,” Dulgher said.

His $20 billion strategy focuses on attracting trusted international corporations, building infrastructure, boosting tourism, and creating jobs that keep Moldovans at home. Talks with Ryanair represent the first step in a wider approach to connect Moldova with Europe’s major companies, reduce travel costs, and rebuild investor trust.

“A healthy level of competition is essential,” Dulgher added. “In September, FlyOne flights were sold out and Wizz Air pushed one-way tickets from Moldova to London to as high as £500. With Ryanair and others in the market, Moldovans will finally have real choice and affordable access. Low-cost flights and major investment are not luxuries – they are the foundations of Moldova’s future.”

Contact:
Coaliția pentru Unitate și Bunăstare (CUB)
press@cub.md

+373 690 11 906
secretariat@coalitiacub.md

Coaliția Pentru Unitate și Bunăstare
CUB
+373 690 11 906
secretariat@coalitiacub.md

Coaliția pentru Unitate și Bunăstare

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