CHISINAU, November 20 (Sputnik) – Chisinau will hand over its repayment schedule for the $400-million gas debt to Russian energy giant Gazprom in late 2014 or early 2015, Moldovan Economics Minister Adrian Candu said Thursday.
“We have already found a formula to solve the problem. By the end of this year or early next year the government will hand over its debt repayment schedule to Gazprom,” Candu told RIA Novosti in an interview.
According to the Moldovan Ministry of Economy, the country currently pays about $374 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian gas. The long-term gas supply contract with Gazprom expired in 2011, and has since been annually renewed.
Last week, Russia's Gazprom and Moldova's Moldovagaz signed an agreement, supplementing to the existing gas deliveries contract for 2015. According to the deal, the gas price will be reduced to $332 per 1,000 cubic meters. The projected volume of gas deliveries stands at almost 3 billion cubic meters.
Moldova to Start Talks on New Russian Gas Contract in Early 2015: Minister
Moldova and Russia plan to start negotiations on a new gas contract in early 2015, Moldovan Economics Minister Adrian Candu said Thursday.
The previous Russian-Moldovan gas contract expired in 2011 but the sides have since extended it every year.
“After talks with Gazprom's top management in Chisinau, we agreed to start negotiating a contract for a period of 3-5 years after the New Year holiday,” Candu told RIA Novosti in an interview.
“So far, we only agreed on extending Russian gas supplies for another year, until December 31, 2015,” he added.
On November 11, Russian energy giant Gazprom and Moldovagaz, a joint Russian-Moldavian company in which Gazprom holds 50 percent of stakes, signed supplements to existing gas contracts.
According to Moldovagaz’s official website, the documents stipulate the supply of 2,960 million cubic meters of gas to Moldova and a transit volume of 18,610 million cubic meters and are valid throughout 2015.
From 2007 to 2011, Moldova received gas under a four-year contract signed in late 2006, which stipulated a gradual increase in prices to bring them to average European levels by 2011.
Romanian Gas Sales to Moldova to Start in 5 Years at Best: Minister
Romania is unlikely to replace Russia as a major gas supplier to Moldova and other neighboring states within the next five years, Moldovan Economics Minister Adrian Candu said Thursday.
Romania is preparing to extract gas from deposits in the Black Sea and deliver them to Moldova via the recently launched Iasi-Ungheni pipeline. However, the current amount of gas extracted in Romania is sufficient of only to covering 70-80 percent of the domestic demand, with the rest being supplied by Russia.
According to Candu’s estimates, Romania will become fully independent from Russian gas “only in five or six years.”
“Only after that can we speak of Romania as a possible alternative gas supplier for Moldova and other neighboring states, for example, Bulgaria,” Candu told RIA Novosti in an interview.
The Iasi-Ungheni pipeline was commissioned on August 27, 2014. Its length on the Romanian territory is 32 kilometers (19.8 miles). Some 736 meters (about 2400 feet) have been constructed under the river Prut, and another 11 kilometers are located on the territory of Moldova.
In September, the Moldovan Ministry of Economy stated that the European Union is set to allocate some 10 million euros ($12.9 million) to expand the Iasi-Ungheni pipeline to Moldova’s capital Chisinau, the official website of the Moldovan Economy Ministry reported.
