GAS NATURAL FENOSA REFUTES INFORMATION ABOUT SELLING ITS ASSETS IN MOLDOVA

The information, which recently appeared in the media, that the Gas Natural Fenosa would sell its enterprises in Moldova, does not correspond to reality, said GNF Moldova press service, though confirming that over recent years many foreign companies demonstrated interest to its assets in Moldova.

With all this, the group preserves its interest to Moldova, though it is not one of company’s strategic interests.

“Business climate stability and legislation observing are important components of country’s attraction for any foreign investor”, said authors of the message, reminding that Gas Natural Fenosa initiated an international arbitration process against Moldova in August 2015 for refusal to include financial deviations [82 million euros] in the tariff.

Besides, in May 2017, the group complained to the Energy Community, which also started its investigation. GNF stressed that it is interested in constructive dialog to jointly find solutions for rehabilitating trust in Moldovan authorities.

The Gas Natural Fenosa is working on the Moldovan market since 2000 and is servicing over 800 thousand clients by means of the RED Union Fenosa and the Gas Natural Fenosa Furnizare Energie, which are distributing and selling electricity in the center and the south of Moldova, including Chisinau.

In recent years, the company had several conflict situations with the National Energy Regulatory Agency, mostly concerning tariffs on electricity. The GNF maintains that tariffs do not include all the expenditures on distribution and supplying of electricity, as well as financial deviations, caused by the Moldovan leu rate fluctuations against the US dollar, and the volume of investments in network modernization.