The Republic of Moldova secured sufficient amounts of natural gas for this winter, said Deputy Premier Andrei Spînu. According to him, Energocom purchases gas for the right side of the Nistru from the international market at a price that is lower than the one resulting from the contract signed with Gazprom. The amounts of gas provided by Gazprom continue being supplied to the Transnistrian region for the MGRES (Kuchurgan power plant) to deliver electricity to the right side of the Nistru at a lower price, IPN reports.
According to the minister of infrastructure and regional development, the price of US$73 per MW that is paid by Chisinau to the Kuchurgan power plant is the lowest possible price negotiated with Tiraspol. The government’s priority is to supply the citizens with electricity and the formula agreed with MGRES considerably reduced the probability of blackouts.
“Yes, the price matters. Evidently, US$73 is more than US$62.5. We managed to negotiate the wanted quantity of electrical energy and less the price. When we opened the negotiations, the MGRES wanted a higher electricity price, but we managed to reach a consensus so as to supply the whole country with electricity and this led to a reduction in charges,” Andrei Spînu stated in the program “Reflection Points” on Vocea Basarabiei channel.
Moreover, the official assured that the right side of the Nistru has sufficient gas reserves for this winter even if the whole amount of gas coming from Gazprom is delivered to the Transnistrian region.
“We have sufficient reserves to pass well this winter. We each day increase the available supplies. Energocom purchases gas from international exchanges. The price of the gas supplied by Gazprom in January is US$1,230, which is higher than the price we pay now for the gas bought from international exchanges. The last few days, we purchased gas for approximately €900,” said the official.
Andrei Spînu also said that the extension of the environmental permit for the Rybnitsa steel works is part of the negotiations held with the self-styled Transnistrian administration. If the plant ceases operations, 400 employees will remain without a job.
“There is no place for negotiations as both citizens from the right side and from the left side of the Nistru work at the steel works. There are technological processes that should be maintained, but the plant woks at reduced capacity as the amount of 5.7 million cubic meters of gas a day is not enough. We all realize that this crisis is the effect of Gazprom’s decision to cut the amount of supplied gas,” noted the Deputy Prime Minister.
The chairman of the Administration Board of SA Moldovagaz Vadim Ceban announced that the company in January will purchase gas from Russia’s Gazprom at the price of US$1,230 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas. Under the agreement reached with Tiraspol, the whole amount of gas is supplied to the Transnistrian region in exchange for the price of US$73 per MW for the electricity produced by the MGRES.
