As from October 1, the Russian concern Gazprom will either fully halt the supplies of natural gas or the supplies volumes will be reduced, said energy expert Victor Parlicov. According to him, the switchover to the winter formula, which is advantageous to the Republic of Moldova, can make Russia halt the supplies. The good side is that the authorities anticipated such a scenario and the plan to economize on natural gas and purchase it from alternative sources is a realistic one, IPN reports.
According to Victor Parlicov, Gazprom keeps the Republic of Moldova in suspense and refuses to say it clearly if it will supply gas after October 1 or not. There are signs that Russia plans to reduce the volumes supplied to the Republic of Moldova.
“The indirect signs show that the contract on October 1 will be terminated and no gas will be supplied or the supplied volumes will be limited. Something is being planned as Gazprom didn’t reserve capacities for transporting natural gas in October in Ukraine. Respectively, only the earlier reserved 5.7 million cubic meters a day remain for October and this will probably not fully cover the needs of the Republic of Moldova,” Victor Parlicov stated in the talk show “The Issue” on Primul în Moldova channel.
Under the contract signed with Gazprom last October, the 70/30 price calculation formula is applied during the cold period of the year. This means that 70% of the price will be based on the cost of oil products, while 30% on the market price of natural gas. Victor Parlicov said the new formula can make Russia halt gas supplies as the Republic of Moldova now pays a price that is almost similar to the price on the international market.
“As from October 1, Gazprom has the legal right to fully terminate this contract. Even if Gazprom could have fully stopped the supply from May, it didn’t do this because the difference between the spot price and our contract price wasn’t significant. The formula for the cold period of the year now takes effect and the difference between the spot price and the price at which Gazprom is obliged to supply gas to us will be rather big. As from October, we should have a price lower than US$1,000. This could be a reason for the halt. The plan of measures proposed by the Government is realistic. This September, which was rather cold, gas consummation decreased by 28% on last September. There is no better motivation to economize than the high prices,” said the energy expert.
On Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spînu said that Moldova as from October 1 is to pay approximately US$1,050 per cubic meter of gas, as opposed to the current price of US$1,880. If the natural gas supplies are halted, Termoelectrica will switch over to crude oil. The gas stores are being increased and measures are being taken to reduce consumption. Energocom is ready to buy gas from the international market.
