Minister of Energy Victor Parlicov says the audit of the debt claimed by Gazprom from Moldovagaz remains in force, and the Government will rely on its findings in the future discussions with the Russian company. The reaction comes after the Moldovagaz board rejected the audit.
“The board held a vote on the audit report, but it didn’t hear the Government’s proposal as to the settlement of the alleged debt of Moldovagaz to its majority shareholder. So, we will propose our solution once again, or we will wait for alternative proposals from Gazprom”, said the minister.
In the meantime, says Victor Parlicov, the authorities will try to clarify a number of aspects mentioned in the report and which the auditors could not conclude on the merits because of missing Moldovagaz records, in particular regarding the debt created before 2003.
“These aspects include the contribution of the Moldovan government to the incorporation of Moldovagaz, and the correctness of the evaluation of assets and their inclusion in the company’s equity. Also, we’d like to know how correctly the bills of exchange issued by the Moldovan Government to repay the debt to Gazprom was reflected in Moldovagaz’s accounting records, especially as regards the partition of debts between the left and the right bank”, said Parlicov.
In early September, the Moldovan government announced that, per the audit, much of the $709 million debt claimed by Gazprom is either non-enforceable or could not be confirmed by documents. The government also said the audit would enable it to counter-sue Gazprom, proposing to settle for $8.6 million.
After the audit was rejected by the Moldovagaz board, where Gazprom controls a majority, the Russian concern doubted the reliability and independence of the audit, saying its findings could not “influence in any way” the claimed debt.
