City councilman says the current heating charge is higher than necessary

Oleg Cernei, city councilman representing Moldova Noastra Alliance (AMN) Party, says the price of 540 lei paid by Chisinau householders for a G-calorie of heat is higher than what he considers to be the real price – less than 500 lei. Cernei relies on a report prepared by the City Finance Department, which assessed on the mayor’s initiative the correctness of calculating the current heating tariff, approved by the City Council on September 25 this year. The councilman told Info-Prim Neo that even though the assessment has been completed, Termocom’s leadership refuses to sign the assessment conclusion. At the same time, the head of the Finance Department, Valentina Vazdautan has said she will not make the real tariff public until the heat supplier signs. The Finance Department is to present the respective report at the next meeting of the City Council. If the report is approved, the Council will have to review the heating charges and could annul or adjust the decision of January 25 to the findings of the assessment report, Cernei said. In that case, the debt owed by the local authorities to Termocom could shrink. According to the aforementioned decision, the Council committed to cover from the city coffers the difference of 307 lei between the new tariff and the old one, which remained the same for the household consumers (233 lei). Termocom has sent to the City Hall an invoice of 150 million lei to compensate for the heat price hike. The first instalment of 50 million lei has been already paid via an ordinance by the Mayor, but Termocom, which had sued the City Hall before the first instalment was paid, is insisting on a judicial resolution.