The state-run company Energocom will have the legal authority to purchase and store natural gas, after the Cabinet on Wednesday approved a resolution to this effect.

The document also introduces the requirement for Energocom to sign with suppliers of last resort a public service obligation framework agreement.

The sale of natural gas to suppliers of last resort shall take place in cases where the delivery of natural gas from the market under ongoing contracts is suspended or limited; also, when the need arises to supply consumers with amounts of natural gas additional to those established in ongoing contracts, or if the price of natural gas delivered by Energocom is lower than the price of natural gas contracted by suppliers of last resort.

Energocom is to carry out natural gas purchases based on the procedure established by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which, according to the authorities, will provide an increased degree of transparency of the tendering process.