● MONDAY, October 26
Turkish experts train National Food Safety Agency employees
Fifty employees of local offices of the National Food Safety Agency of Moldova were trained by Turkish experts. The Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency TIKA, together with the National Food Safety Agency, staged a training course with the aim of enriching employees’ knowledge of the norms of production in accordance with the European standards so that the Moldovan products of animal origin become more competitive on the domestic and foreign markets. According to a press release of the organizers, besides theory on the hygiene of milk products, poultry and eggs, slaughtering procedures and norms of the food safety management system ISO 22000 HACCP, the program also included production practice.
Air Moldova and S7 start to operate Chisinau-Yekaterinburg flights
Air Moldova extended its cooperation agreement with S7 Airlines and began to provide flights from Chisinau to Russia’s Yekaterinburg on October 25. The flights will be operated with stopover at Domodedovo in Moscow. The cheapest one-way ticket costs €159, while a round-trip ticket costs minimum €332, airport taxes included.
One applicant for post of National Bank governor
The special commission for selecting candidates for the post of governor of the National Bank of Moldova received only one application. MP Stefan Creanga, who heads the commission, has told IPN that the application was filed by Sergiu Iachim, who works as a consultant at a company in Luxemburg, Belgium. Sergiu Iachim ran as an independent in the parliamentary elections of November 28, 2010. He didn’t poll the number of votes needed to pass the election threshold.
● TUESDAY, October 27
Rapid economic recovery is a nice, but too optimistic scenario, NIER
Even if Moldova’s economy grew by 4.8% in the first quarter of this year, most of the macroeconomic indicators worsened in the second quarter and this shows that the national socioeconomic sector is vulnerable, says the publication of the National Institute for Economic Research (NIER) “Moldovan Economic Trends”, which was presented in Chisinau on October 27. NIER director Alexandru Stratan said the macroeconomic situation is tense because of the frauds committed at the three banks and because the national currency depreciated significantly against the dollar and euro. Also, the national foreign exchange reserves fell by over one third, the development partners stopped providing financial assistance, while the remittances decreased by 25% (US$400 million). In such conditions, the NIER experts forecast that the GDP in 2015 will fall by 2%. The global agricultural production will decline by about 10% compared with last year, the industrial production by 2%, exports by 15%, while imports by 25%. The internal trade and services provided for the population will shrink by 7% and 5% respectively. A rapid economic recovery next year is a nice, but too optimistic scenario.
Public debates on calculation of new power and gas tariffs
The National Agency for Energy Regulation (ANRE) will hold public debates centering on the calculation of the new electric power and natural gas tariffs. The Agency’s Administration Board said the public examination of the external audit reports presented by the electricity and natural gas companies starts next week. The given reports were compiled based on the Administration Board’s September 3 decision to suspend its decisions of July 17-18 by which the new tariffs were approved.
● WEDNESDAY, October 28
2016 draft budget of Chisinau municipality submitted to CMC
The draft municipal budget for 2016 was finalized and submitted to the Chisinau Municipal Council (CMC) for examination and approval. It provides for incomes of 2.943,679 billion lei and for a total expenditure of 3.047, 326 billion lei. Thus, the spending is by over 100 million lei larger than the incomes. Those who drafted the budget suggest that the deficit should be covered with the money planned to be obtained from the sale of fixed and tangible assets and with internal and external sources of financing.
One more businessman arrested in BEM case
The manager of an oil company operating in Moldova was arrested in the case of the frauds committed at Banca de Economii (BEM). He will be initially held at the remand unit of the National Anticorruption Center for 72 hours. The businessman is suspected of illegally obtaining a number of loans to the value of over 80 000 000 lei from the BEM. He faces a fine of up to 60,000 lei or three to eight years in jail. He will also be banned from performing particular activities or holding particular posts for a period of up to five years. The legal entity is liable to a fine of up to 120,000 lei and can be liquidated.
● THURSDAY, October 29
Free Economic Zone “Balti” to be extended
The Free Economic Zone “Balti” will include 8 more hectares of land located in Orhei district. The zone will be extended at the request of the foreign investor Sumitomo Electric Bordnetze GmbH (SEBN), which intends to invest about €20 million in the construction of an electric wire harnesses factory on this land in the near future. The factory will be 25,000 square meters in area and will has 3,200 employees. The investor forms part of a group that has subsidiaries in 33 countries and employs more than 180,000 individuals. In 2013-2014, Sumitomo Electric Bordnetze GmbH earned revenues of €1 billion.
Natural gas sector to be regulated by new law
The natural gas sector will be regulated by a new law that transposes the EU principles stipulated in the Third Energy Package to the national legislation and defines the methods of organizing and managing the natural gas sector. The draft law was approved by the Government on October 28. The bill stipulates the access ways to the market, the criteria and procedures used when providing licenses that allow transporting, distributing, supplying and storing natural gas and exploring the closed distribution systems. “The implementation of the principles laid down in the Third Energy Package will contribute to the further reformation of the natural gas sector and to the creation of a competition-based market where the end-users will benefit from the right to be supplied with natural gas by the company of their choice, at reasonable prices, in conditions of quality, safety and efficiency,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Stephane Bride.
● FRIDAY, October 30
Decision to approve higher power and gas tariffs suspended further
The Administration Board of the National Agency for Energy Regulation (ANRE) extended the November 1 deadline by which its decisions of July 17 – 18 whereby higher electricity transportation charges and electric power and natural gas tariffs were approved, were suspended. The decision took effect on October 30, when it was published in the Official Gazette. According to a communique of the ANRE, the deadline for electric power tariffs was extended until November 8, while that for natural gas tariffs – until November 15. This means that the power and heat bills by these deadlines will be calculated based on the old tariffs that are valid until July 31.
Nine aspirants compete for post of National Bank governor
The special commission for selecting candidates for the post of governor of the National Banka of Moldova accepted the applications of nine contenders. Contacted by IPN, MP Stefan Creanga, who is the commission’s head, said they received 11 applications, but two of these were incomplete. Among the candidates are ex-minister of finance Veceaslav Negruta, ex-first vice governor of the National Bank Dumitru Ursu, who heads the Bankers League of Moldova, and Andrei Sagaidac and Oleg Stratulat, who worked at state institutions.
First grape packing house opened in Costesti
The first grape processing and packing house in Moldova was put into commission. It is located in Costesti village of Ialoveni district and was built within the regional development project “Group of Producers and Packing House for Modern Export Marketing Services”. The investments in the house totaled 26.975,89 million lei, provided from the National Regional Development Fund. The sum includes the contribution of the regional grape producers association.
Moldova stops importing pork from several regions of Ukraine
The National Food Safety Agency of Moldova decided to stop the import of pork from several regions of Ukraine. The decision was taken after cases of African pig plague were reported in the immediate vicinity of Moldova’s border, at a distance of 60 – 100 km. It applies to the regions Kiev, Sumi, Chernigov, Poltava, Jitomir, Odessa, and Nikolayev. The officers of customs posts will verify the baggage of travelers, while the meat products will be confiscated and destroyed. The African pig plague is a very contagious infectious disease with acute development that affects wild boars and domestic pigs, regardless of race, age and sex. There is no treatment and no efficient vaccine for this disease. Consequently, all the suspect animals will be killed. The pig plague poses no threat to humans.
● SATURDAY, October 31
Seven groups of agricultural producers registered
The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry of Moldova, which is the central authority responsible for the recognition and monitoring of the activity of producer groups, has so far issued recognition certificates to seven such groups. The Ministry said that it commenced the procedures needed to strengthen the cooperation/association between agricultural producers so as to increase the output of particular homogenous products and to help sell them on the domestic and foreign markets, reduce the production costs and stabilize the producer prices.
