MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF OBSERVERS OF “MOLDOVAGAZ” CALLS ON MOLDOVA TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS AGAINST GAZPROM

Sergiu Tofilat, a member of the Board of Observers of the Moldovan-Russian Joint Stock Company “Moldovagaz,” called on the Moldovan authorities to impose sanctions against Gazprom and ban the purchase of natural gas from Russia. As reported by INFOTAG, speaking on the RLive television channel, he stated that “today, Ukraine's army is defending Moldova.”

“Let's assume that the gas price from Gazprom could have been cheaper for Moldova. Thus, we save a few million dollars. Practically, our security and our ability to sleep peacefully are due to the fact that the Ukrainian army is resisting Russia's military aggression. And are we going to give money (for gas) to Putin so he can kill those who are defending us?” Tofilat asked.

He pointed out that Moldova receives assistance from the European Union, the United States, Norway, and the United Kingdom so that the state can pay compensation for gas and heating.

“And what, are we going to take this money from them and give it to Gazprom? Very nice! I believe that as a state, if we want to protect our integrity, and not finance Putin's military aggression against Ukraine, we should not give Putin a single penny,” Tofilat concluded.

Since October 4, 2022, Moldova's right-bank region has not been purchasing gas from the Russian conglomerate. All gas from Gazprom, amounting to 5.7 million cubic meters per day, is supplied to the Transnistrian region by Moldovagaz. The region does not pay for this gas, so the gas debt has exceeded $10 billion.

The authorities of the region, which has not been under Moldova's control since 1990, accumulate money in a “gas account,” collected from industrial and household gas consumers, to cover the huge deficit of the regional budget.

The right-bank part of Moldova uses gas purchased from European operators. In early April, consumers in Moldova's right-bank region consumed gas from the United States delivered from a Greek port.

Moldovagaz, 50% owned by Gazprom, has a 5-year contract with Gazprom. It implies the supply of 3.2 billion cubic meters of gas per year: 1.1 billion for Moldova's right bank and 2.1 billion for the left bank of the Dniester. However, since mid-2022, Gazprom has not fulfilled it due to technical reasons (due to military aggression against Ukraine), as the conglomerate can only supply 5.7 million cubic meters of gas per day, which amounts to 2 billion cubic meters of gas per year.