Report: Moldovagaz CEO asks govt for $74 mln loan to pay Gazprom

CHISINAU, Nov 23 (PRIME) -- CEO of Moldovan gas distribution company Moldovagaz Vadim Ceban has asked the government for a U.S. $74 million loan to pay debt to Russian gas giant Gazprom, he said in an interview to Moldovan television channel Jurnal TV broadcast late on Monday.

Earlier in the day, Gazprom’s official representative Sergei Kupriyanov said that the company had notified Moldova that it could suspend supplies in 48 hours unless the bill due on Monday is paid because a recent contract envisages 100% payment for the current bills.

“In September, we covered the debt with our own efforts, but now we are working with the government because we have to pay for October and half of November. We’ve asked the national Commission for Exceptional Situations and the government to help us get a loan, we owe 1.3 billion Moldovan lei (around $74 million),” Ceban said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister Andrei Spinu said that the ministry was yet to look into it.

Ceban told newswire Newsmaker.md that the debt stemmed from discrepancy in tariffs and payments. In October, the official gas tariff for Moldovan consumers amounted to $150 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas, while Moldovagaz bought the gas for $800 per 1,000 cubic meters.

The Moldovan company said on its Facebook page it was working to solve the problem.

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