Moldovan authorities accused Gazprom of wanting to leave Moldovans without gas

CHISINAU, 4 Oct – PRIME. Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova, Minister of Infrastructure Andrei Spinu said that Gazprom is violating its own obligations and is looking for excuses not to supply gas to Moldovans in winter.

Earlier, Gazprom announced that it reserves the right to completely stop gas supplies to Moldova if the country violates its payment obligations by October 20, and also because of a gross violation of the deadlines for concluding an agreement to settle the historical debt of Moldovagaz JSC.

“Gazprom” violates the signed contract and supplies Moldova with only 70% of the amount that they were obliged to provide. We regret that Gazprom is violating its own obligations and is looking for excuses not to supply gas to Moldovans on the eve of winter,” Spinu wrote on his Telegram channel.

He noted that Moldova has always paid for gas, including in advance, and the delays were associated only with rising fuel prices. Spinu also insists that there are no blockages on the part of Ukraine for the transportation of natural gas.

“The debt to Gazprom can only be assessed by an independent audit. Moldova’s interest lies in paying the correct and real amounts. Moldova will not pay debts that do not belong to it,” the deputy prime minister added.

Moldova is experiencing an energy crisis due to rising energy prices. The authorities intend to reduce gas consumption in winter by at least 15%, and have also developed and submitted for discussion a plan that includes turning off street lighting, lowering the central heating temperature, transferring schoolchildren and students to distance learning. Since August, Moldovagaz has been cutting off consumers who have not paid on time for services for the supply of natural gas.

In October last year, the Moldovan authorities agreed with Gazprom to extend the contract for the supply of gas to the republic, subject to an audit of the Moldovagaz debt in 2022. Only in August, the Moldovan government concluded an audit agreement with the Norwegian company Wikborg Rein Advokatfirma and the British Forensic Risk Alliance & Co. However, Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spinu told Gazprom that the government would not have time to complete the audit of the debt by October 1, so he asked the Russian side for a delay.