The government of Moldova said that it will import gas that is not supplied by the Russian energy giant Gazprom for the first time ever, TPV World says, citing Reuters.
The decision by the Moldovan government to stop receiving natural gas from Russia is connected to politically driven coercion by the Gazprom leadership, according to Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Spinu.
Spinu, who is also the Moldovan government’s Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development, noted that in October 2022, Moscow restricted natural gas exports to Moldova by upwards of 30%, threatening to do so once more in December.
Spinu said that the public enterprise Energocom‘s expenditures in boosting the raw material storage reserves and its acquisitions from abroad will ensure that Moldova survives this winter without Russian gas.
According to a senior source quoted by Germany’s Deutsche Welle news agency on Wednesday, Moldova revealed intentions to sue Russia’s Gazprom last week for breaching its commitments under a deal to deliver gas.
“They simply ignore their obligations. And they will pay for it,” Spinu told DW, adding that Moldova had been forced to procure gas and energy from other suppliers, Reuters reports.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Moldova began buying natural gas, primarily from Romania, as well as other international markets. Until recently, Russia’s Gazprom supplied all of the nation’s gas needs.
