Gas price up by 15 per cent in Moldova

Chisinau, 18 July /MOLDPRES/ - The Board of Directors of the National Agency for Energy Regulation (ANRE) today approved an increase by 15.4 per cent of gas tariff for final consumers. They will pay 6,538 lei (without VAT) for 1,000 cubic meters.

A value added tax of 8 per cent is paid when supplying gas, so that, in the end, the price will increase up to 7,070 lei per 1,000 cubic meters. The last rise in price of gas for final consumers was in September 2011, when the average tariff was increased by 23.2 per cent, up to 5,664 lei for 1,000 cubic meters.

MoldovaGaz state enterprise’s representatives requested to increase gas rates by 51.7 per cent. "According to our updated estimative calculations, the tariff should be of 8,597 lei, which represents a rise up of 51.7 per cent against the present one," the head of the Tariff Policy Department of MoldovaGaz, Ilie Tutunari said.

The company has changed its request only few hours after it broadcasted a press release on 17 July, by which announced that „the calculated, forecast and requested price of gas is in average of 8,386 lei per 1,000 cubic meters or by 48 per cent higher than the present average tariff of 5,666 lei”.

The gas supplier motivated its increase request by the depreciation of national currency against the foreign ones and financial losses, which it was inflicted in the context. When the last modification of tariff made in September 2011, it was taken into account an exchange rate of 11.9 lei per dollar. The rate of the national currency in the first quarter of 2015 was of 18.4 lei per dollar, by 54.6 per cent over the level estimated 4 years ago.

On the other hand, the import price of gas diminished. In the second quarter of 2015, Moldova imported gas from Russia at a price of 252.2 dollars per 1,000 cubic meters, by almost 60 dollars less than in the first three months of 2015. The gas import price was of 376 dollars per 1,000 cubic meters in the fourth quarter of 2014. „Even if we purchase gas at a lower price, this decrease does not cover the difference created as a result of leu’s depreciation,” MoldovaGaz representatives said.

MoldovaGaz Head Alexandru Gusev said that he agreed to discuss the gradual inclusion of financial deviations created as a result of depreciation of leu, which reach 1 billion lei only for transport and supply.

More experts requested an audit of companies of the energy sector. On the other hand, the head of Association of Energy Consumers, Nicolae Mogoreanu, said that suppliers „went into payment default, got huge debts following leu’s depreciation, this is why tariffs are to be increased in order not to worsen situation”. „This should be done two years ago,” Mogoreanu said.

The head of ANRE Tariffs and Economic Analyses Department, Alexandru Mija, said that the financial deviations were not taken into account when setting the tariff, but ANRE approved higher tariffs „in order to unblock the situation in the area”. „It was also taken into account the social and economic situation and the one of consumers,” Mija said.

The new tariffs will enter into force once published in the Moldovan Official Journal.

(Reporter V. Bercu, Editor L. Alcaza)