Many Moldovan wineries likely to go bankrupt

Many wine plants in Moldova could go bankrupt after the Russian Federation has restricted the Moldovan wine imports, the chairman of the Moldovan Union of Wine Exporters, Gheorghe Cozub, has stated to Info-Prim Neo. He said that wineries which export a part of production to the Baltic Countries, Belarus and Kazakhstan are working now, while those which export to Russia are stationing. Cozub explained that enterprises cannot reimburse credits to banks, pay taxes to state and other fees. Even more, wineries must take back the production from Russian customs and they must spend 800 dollars for each trainload with wine that conveys Ukraine in transit. Cozub noted that both small and large enterprises run the risk to go bankrupt under present conditions and most of them have already sent their workers in holidays. Moldova exported wines worth 313 million dollars in 2005, by 12 percent more than in 2004. Moldova exports 80 percent of its wine production or about 250 million bottles a year to Russia.