CMC to compensate expenses of “Termocom” JSC related to increase in price of natural gas

On Wednesday, November 28, the Chisinau Municipal Council approved to assign MDL 33 mln to “Termocom” JSC for the compensation of expenses related to the increase in price of the natural gas. According to the same decision, the present tariff of MDL 233 per G-calorie will be maintained until the end of the year. At the same time, interim mayor Vasile Ursu suggested to keep the tariff unchanged for the entire heating period 2006-2007. The councilors decided to ask the Government to contribute with a half of this sum, because the local budget does not have sufficient resources. At the same time, the planned financial means will be allotted in several installments, along with the sums which will have to be paid monthly by “Termocom” to the natural gas supplier. In this way, the local authorities hope that the sum will be smaller, because “Termocom” supplied from the beginning of the heating period 3-fold less G-calories than in the winter period. According to the manager of “Termocom” JSC, Dionisie Antocel, the financial situation of the enterprise is pitiable, including because the tariff for the thermal energy was not yet adjusted. He says that the tariff should constitute MDL 550 per G-calorie. Dionisie Antocel mentioned that at present the enterprise has debts of about MDL 1.8 bln to the creditors and the enterprise might fail if its main stockholder will not support it financially. The debates on the economic situation of the enterprises flared up. Independent councilor Igor Crapivca declared that the City Hall should not support financially an enterprise which is bankrupt because of the thefts admitted within it. He proposed not to offer this money directly, but to elaborate a mechanism for subsidizing the socially vulnerable categories of persons. In this context, Ursu stated that the local authorities will elaborate a mechanism for the payment of compensations only if a new tariff for thermal energy will be approved. Although previously, Vasile Ursu declared that the CMC will examine the possibility of increasing the tariff for thermal energy, this issue was not included in the agenda of the session. Independent councilor Mihai Roscovan told Info-Prim Neo that the initiative on the increase in tariffs should have been brought up for discussion by “Termocom”. Roscovan states that “the communist party, which is known to be the protector of this enterprise”, does not want “to anger voters with higher tariffs so its main argument is grounded on the local budget”.