Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spînu, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development, said the opposition’s assertions that the government does not become involved in the discussions with Gazprom are not true. According to the official, the technical negotiations on the extension of the contract for the supply of gas are held between MoldovaGaz and experts of the Russian gas giant, while the representatives of the power have discussions with the administration of Gazprom, IPN reports.
Even if earlier Andrei Spînu announced that the negotiations on the contract for the supply of Russian gas to the Republic of Moldova are the task of MoldovaGaz, he now said that the country’s administration gets involved in this process. He noted that he had a discussion with the chief executive of Gazprom Alexey Miller and he offered this to meet in Chisinau or in Moscow.
“The contract for the supply of gas to the Republic of Moldova is a contract between two business entities, MoldovaGaz and Gazprom. I had discussions with MoldovaGaz, with Vadim Ceban on the pace of negotiations. It is not true that the government does not get involved in the discussions with Gazprom. Today I had several discussions with Mister Miller on the supply of gas. We hope the situation as regards the contract will become clear in several days and we will bring clarity to the citizens,” Andrei Spînu stated in the program “Secrets of the Power” on JurnalTV channel.
Spînu said there are preconditions for the purchase price of Russian gas to be much more advantageous to the Republic of Moldova even if the prices now go up on the international market.
“We are now extending the current contract. The contract signed by MoldovaGaz with Gazprom stipulates a concrete calculation formula. This formula, judging by the global situation, is good for the Republic of Moldova. As from October 1, the price of gas will be calculated in a different way compared with what we see now at European level. The speculations that the government does not become involved are out of place. If we look at the gas prices, including when the President in 2016 was we know who, we see that regardless of the number of flights to Moscow, the price of gas was one of the highest,” stated Spînu.
The contract for the supply of Russian gas to the Republic of Moldova expires at the end of this month. The National Agency for Energy Regulation didn’t officially confirm the information, but economists said the natural gas tariffs will rise by 35%. The executive announced that if the tariffs for end-users increase, the families with low incomes can receive compensations.
