Moldovagaz has bought all gas for needs of right bank of Dniester in 2024/2025 heating season - company
CHISINAU. Dec 13 (Interfax) - JSC Moldovagaz has bought all natural gas for the needs of the right bank of the Dniester during the 2024/2025 heating season, said Vadim Ceban, the company's acting head.
"Moldovagaz has bought all natural gas required by the right bank of the country for the entire October 2024-March 2025 heating season. The process was initiated in July this year and successfully completed on December 12, 2024. A total of 7,952,196 MWh were purchased, which is estimated at 747.9 million cubic meters," Ceban said on Telegram.
He said the average purchase price reached 509.15 euros per thousand cubic meters, with delivery to Moldova's virtual trading point.
The bulk of the gas - 700.1 million cubic meters - was purchased on the Romanian Commodities Exchange in August-December, including 675.6 mcm on the forward market and 24.5 mcm on the spot market.
The remaining 47.8 mcm was purchased from JSC Energocom based on the government order of May 29, 2024 on the requirement to store gas, Ceban said.
Moldova has declared a 60-day emergency starting on December 16 to address the complicated energy situation. The decision was made in the small hours of Friday at the request of Moldovan Prime Minister Dorian Recean. The government said the measure was needed in the context of major risks to Moldova's energy security and possible humanitarian consequences on the left bank of the Dniester due to uncertainty regarding Gazprom's natural gas supplies to the Transniestrian region.
An energy crisis in Moldova is being anticipated due to a possible halt in Russian gas supplies to the region due to the suspension of its transit through Ukraine from January 1, 2025, by decision of the Ukrainian authorities. Chisinau has discussed possible supplies via the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline with Gazprom, but no agreements have yet been reached. An end to gas supplies to Transniestria would sharply reduce power generation by the Moldavskaya GRES or MGRES power plant, which would put electricity supply to the right bank of the Dniester at risk.
The Moldovan authorities have said that if MGRES does stop supplying electricity, this would be imported from the European ENTSO-E network and from Romania in particular, which would make it far more expensive.
The gas tariff for end users grew 27.6% in Moldova on December 1. The decision to raise domestic prices was made urgently, following a substantial increase in purchase prices for natural gas on international markets.
The Moldovan government on December 11 approved a provision on exceptional situations in the power industry and the corresponding plan of action.