Representatives of the agricultural sector of Moldova made gloomy forecasts. According to the head of the Association “Agrocereale” Igor Grigoriev, the higher gas prices approved by the National Agency for Energy Regulation on Tuesday will lead to a rise in food prices as the gas and fuels are basic constituents of prices. For their part, representatives of the government said the rise in rates is influenced by the higher purchase piece of gas, IPN reports.
Farmers said the natural gas is massively used in the food industry and the higher gas rates will inevitably lead to new rises in food prices.
“The gas price is painful for everyone, for private individuals, for the national economy and for the agrifood sector. Gas is used to dry grain production, especially corn. This will affect a lot the price of bread and derivatives. The gas price will directly affect the price of end products. Besides the rise in gas prices, the fuel prices also increase. It is a global trend influenced by the war,” “Agrocereale” head Igor Grigoriev stated in the program “Ghețu Asks” on TV8 channel.
Jurist Stanislav Pavlovschi called on the authorities to increase citizens’ financial capacities so that these could keep pace with the soaring prices.
“The prices grow everywhere, it’s true. But the price rises in our country are different that those in other countries. This happens because there are interests here. Some enrich themselves at the expense of the people. The pays are also important. Do we have a political force in Moldova that can solve this problem? The problem of the ruling party is that they fully isolated themselves and do not accept any piece of advice,” stated Stanislav Pavlovschi.
The representatives of PAS blame the crisis in the region for the state affairs and note that the Government will try to partially subsidize the natural gas rates.
“Moldova does not have gas reserves. We import gas from an aggressor state that attacked its neighbor and uses the gas as an instrument of political pressure. We must ask ourselves if we are ready to concede the sovereignty and independence for gas. During the cold period of the year, the Government offered unprecedented support, 3 billion lei in gas subsides alone,” said PAS MP Alexandru Trubca.
On Tuesday, the National Agency for Energy Regulation approved a new gas rate of 18.6 lei per cubic meter following the rise in the purchase price of gas. The new rates take effect today, June 1.
