“The discussions on the new price of gas we held with the National Agency for Energy Regulation during the last few days were rather strained,” said the president of the joint Moldovan-Russian company SA Moldovagaz Alexandru Gusev. “For Moldovagaz as supplier of gas, the fact that the tariff for gas were raised is very important as the company has sustained daily losses of 3 million lei since the price of the gas purchased from Gazprom was increased to US$232.8 per 1.000 cubic meters on January 1. We are grateful to the National Agency for Energy Regulation for setting the new tariffs so quickly,” Gusev said. He also said that the average price of 3,542 lei per 1,000 cubic meters without the VAT of 6%, as against 3,110 lei earlier, does not allow the company to work profitably. “Moldovagaz sustained losses in 2009 and the new price will bring losses this year as well. We do not agree with the return on assets of 3% included in the tariff. “The company cannot settle its debts to Gaprom as the payments made by the energy companies to which Moldovagaz supplies gas are at an unsatisfactory level,” Gusev said. He voiced hope that the new tariffs will help Termocom pay its debts to the thermoelectric power plants, which have debts to Moldovagaz. He said Moldovagaz's current debt to Gazprom is US$45 million plus US$38 million that must be paid for the gas supplied in December last year, but the payment term has not yet expired. Moldova has a historical debt for gas of US$350 million plus penalties of 50% of the debt. Together with the debt of the Transnistrian region, Moldova's debt amounts to US$2.3 billion.