President Maia Sandu said uncertainty in the energy sector persists as there is no response from Gazprom as to the situation concerning natural gas supplies after October 1. The Russian gas company can halt the supplies of gas to Moldova after October 1 for the reason that the audit to determine the debts of Moldovagaz wasn’t completed. In reality, such a decision by Gazprom would derive from the expected change in the calculation formula that will generate a lower purchase price, IPN reports.
President Sandu assured that the authorities are making maximum effort to form gas reserves and to offer subsidies to household users. Switching over to alternative sources is a solution for buying a low volume of gas at the market price if Gazprom halts the supplies.
“Our situation is more difficult than in other states as no investments were made in the country’s energy security. Furthermore, our people have lower incomes than those in the European Union. We know that a new price calculation formula is to be used after October 1 and we are to pay much less than at present. Namely for this reason, we think there is a risk that Gazprom will halt the supplies of gas. The state will provide subsidies to the citizens by a mechanism that is different from that used last year. But most of the people will receive subsidies. The Government will do its best to reduce the necessary volumes of natural gas. Chisinau is switching over to crude oil,” Maia Sandu stated in the program “New Week” on TV8 channel.
The official said Gazprom cannot invoke the absence of an audit to determine the debts owed by Moldovagaz as this is late due to the war waged by Russia on Ukraine. Moreover, Chisinau is trying to obtain a revision of the calculation formula from Gazprom, but all in vain.
“Neither the Government, nor Moldovagaz received a response from Gazprom. The fact that the audit wasn’t finished cannot serve as a reason for stopping the supplies. The date of October 1 is not stipulated in the protocol. Regrettably, the first tender contest failed. There were no companies willing to carry out this audit. Only recently the Government chose two companies, but the result will be visible only at the end of this year or the start of next year. It is not hard to find gas. It is hard to find gas at reasonable prices. When we started the negotiations, the Russian side demanded a market price. If this had been applied, today we would have paid over US$2,000.We obtained this formula. If there had been no fluctuations on the market, we would have had a reasonable price. Each month, the Government makes attempts to review the formula but Gazprom does not show any wish,” stated President Sandu.
In accordance with the five-year contract signed with Gazprom, the formula for calculating the price of gas for the cold period of the year, for October-March, stipulates that 70% of the price is formed based on the price of oil products, while 30% based on the spot price of natural gas.
