The Chisinau Municipal Council’s decision by which the charges for public water supply and sewerage services are raised runs counter to the legislation, the National Agency for Energy Regulation noted in a press release. Under the legal norm, the charges are approved in accordance with the methodology for determining, approving and applying the charges for public water supply and sewerage and/or wastewater treatment services and only after the NAER approves them, IPN reports.

The press release says that the current legal provisions do not allow approving provisional charges. The NAER will notify the Chisinau Local Office of the State Chancellery of the given decision and will request the responsible bodies to examine the actions of the persons responsible for the unjustified calculation and approval of the given charges, based on Article 328 of the Penal Code concerning the abuse of office or of power.

Under the Chisinau Municipal Council’s decision, the average charge for the public drinking water supply service for residential users will be 16.32 lei/m3, while for the sewage service – 6.62 lei. Respectively, the final charge will be 22.94 lei. For non-residential users, the charge for water will be 16.32 lei, for sewerage - 10.26 lei and the final charge - 26.58 lei (without VAT). The new charges are provisional and will take effect when the relevant decision is published in the local media.