Moldova hasn’t yet discussed the new agreement for the supply of natural gas with Gazprom. After a visit to Moscow, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Valeriu Lazar said the talks will be opened soon now that a new Government was invested in Chisinau. He informed that he discussed the possibility of rescheduling the debt to Gazprom with officials of the company, IPN reports.

“We initiated the procedure for rescheduling the largest part of the debt, which comes from the thermoelectric sector. The reorganization of the three large companies – CET-1, CET-2 and Termocom – is a priority for the Ministry of Economy. We plan to close this process towards autumn. A new company will appear. The debts of the three companies will be transferred to the new company. The largest part of the debt – about US$160 million – is to Moldovagaz, whose majority shareholder is Gazprom. We suggested repaying this debt over 15 years,” stated Valeriu Lazar.

He also said that the Gazprom officials expressed interest in the proposed debt rescheduling formula, but will give an answer later. He added that Moldova may accept many variants in exchange for obtaining clarity in the relations with the natural gas supplier.

The debt of Moldovagaz to Gazprom totals US$500 million. The Transnistrian region has a debt for gas of over US$3.5 billion.