Gazprom warns Moldova it may halt gas supplies unless payment obligations met

Russian energy giant Gazprom on Tuesday said it may halt gas supplies to Moldova by October  20 if it fails to fulfil its gas payment obligations.

Moldovagaz responded it was ready to start negotiations with shareholders in the near future to resolve the dispute over the historical debt repayment to Gazprom, the head of the company, Vadim Ceban, said.

„Moldovagaz…. will make every effort to fulfill its contract obligations to Gazprom in October. Despite the absence of an audit of this debt, Moldovagaz is ready to hold talks with the main shareholders of the company in the near future and put forward concrete proposals to resolve the disputed issues,” Ceban said on Telegram.

Romania’s Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca on Monday offered to supply Moldova with five million cubic meters of gas a day to help its during the energy crisis. Moldova lies between Romania and Ukraine.

In its statement on Tuesday, Gazprom said it “reserves all rights, including the right to completely halt supplies in case of breach of the gas payment obligation by October 20, 2022, and the right to cancel the contract at any time due to the gross violation of timeframe to conclude the agreement for settlement of the legacy debt of Moldovagaz.

Further on, any requests of the Moldovan side anticipating changes in contract terms will be formalized only as appropriate addenda to the contract,” Gazprom said.

Moldova’s gas company Moldovagaz signed a long-term contract with Gazprom last autumn, but Moldova failed to observe a memorandum attached to it – namely, it failed to carry out an independent audit on the historic debts between the two parties.

 

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