Republic of Moldova concluded on Tuesday with the Dutch company Vitol a contract for the acquisition of natural gas, the second of its kind after the one signed on Monday with Poland.
The signing of these contracts comes before the resumption of negotiations with the Russian company Gazprom, which threatens to stop supplying gas if the Chisinau government does not pay its debts and does not sign a new contract, the financial terms of which are not agreed by the Moldovan side.
As in the case of the contract signed with the Polish company PGNiG, the one concluded with the company Vitol is a trial contract and provides for the purchase of one million cubic meters of gas, a volume that was to be delivered on Wednesday, media reports across the Prut and EFE .
At the tender following which these contracts were concluded, the state company Energocom received seven offers. The sample purchase comes to test the capacity to import gas from alternative sources and comes to balance the low pressure in the natural gas supply system, says the executive from Chisinau, according to Agerpres.
It claims that Ukraine would also be willing to deliver gas to R. Moldova, without advance and with payment until the end of winter.
Russian company Gazprom warned on Saturday that it will suspend gas suppliesfor the Republic of Moldova from December 1 if the Chisinau government does not pay in full the debt accumulated for volumes of gas contracted in September and October, while negotiations between the two sides are stalled also because of the price charged by the Russian company for a new contract.
The initial debt was of $433 million, but Gazprom is now demanding $709 million, citing penalties for late payments, an amount not recognized by the Chisinau government.
The two parties also do not agree on the price for a new contract. The Russian company has proposed to the Moldovan side a 25% reduction in the price for deliveries from December 1 if it pays the debt in full. But Chisinau demands a 50% discount and considers that the price of $790 per thousand cubic meters from Gazprom’s offer is too high.