CHISINAU – The pressure in Moldova’s gas trunk has been fully restored after dropping to a critical level in October, Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Andrei Spinu said on Facebook on Nov. 2 evening.
“Everything is going back to normal. Pressure in all sections of Moldovatransgaz transmission systems is above critical levels and continuing to grow, with natural gas pressure in the main pipelines of the transmission system at around 22.6 bars on average,” Spinu said.
Gas started to arrive on Nov. 1 under a renewed contract between Moldovagaz and Gazprom, which went into effect on Monday, he said.
“The volume of natural gas which will arrive at the points of junction with Ukraine today is 14.2 million cubic meters in comparison with 5.7 million cubic meters a day in October,” Spinu said.
Under the new contract, gas is being delivered as before, i.e., via the Hrebenki station in Ukraine.
Also, most infrastructure in Chisinau and Balti now has central heating, Spinu said.
Spinu also outlined immediate tasks to finally resolve the energy crisis and create the conditions for lifting the emergency. They include Termoelectrica switching from fuel oil to natural gas, replenishing the country’s supply with alternative fuel, compensating Ukraine and Romania for the gas Moldova has borrowed from them, and compensating Ukraine for the electricity taken from its grid by ramping up electricity production at a Moldovan hydropower plant in Transdnistria, he said.
It has been reported that the new five-year contract signed in St. Petersburg on Oct. 29 went into effect on Nov. 1. The previous contract expired on Sept. 30. In October, Moldova bought gas under a temporary one-month contract at $790 per 1,000 cubic meters. Gazprom’s supplies met only 67% of the total needed. This led pressure in the pipeline to drop to a critical level of 13 bars. The parliament imposed a 30-day state emergency, from Oct. 22 to Nov. 20. To maintain balance in the pipeline, in the last third of October, Moldova had to borrow gas from Ukraine and Romania and buy on the international market every day between 1 million and 1.5 million cubic meters for an average price of $994 per 1,000 cubic meters.
