The gas purchase contract concluded between JSC "Apa Canal Chisinau" and JSC "Moldovagaz" has expired. The deputy mayor of the capital, Irina Gutnic, announced about this. According to her, already in September, the municipal water operator has requested the conclusion of an additional agreement to extend the term of the contract until May 2025, because the Law on sectoral procurement allows direct negotiation. However, so far, Gutnic says, so and there has been no response from Moldovagaz, IPN reports.

Irina Gutnic told the operational meeting at the City Hall that "Apa-Canal Chisinau" wanted to purchase natural gas at a regulated price, which is currently the lowest on the market

On November 7, the Ministry of Energy announced in a press release that all large consumers are obliged to purchase gas on the free market and that it is forbidden to buy gas at regulated prices. According to the run, thus, the Energy Ministry suggests purchasing through the Romanian Commodity Exchange from the company BRM EST Energy, which is a commodity trader, in this case natural gas. For this transaction, the latter is to charge some commissions.

The deputy mayor said that negotiating on the stock exchange is contrary to the notion of direct negotiation, as the contracting authority is replaced by an intermediary, which will determine the winning bidder. At the same time, the MTender government platform exists at national level, which allows open tendering to be organized in transparent conditions and without fees.

Irina Gutnic also said that it is regrettable that the Energy Ministry has delayed informing non-household consumers about this obligation, putting the gas supply process at risk, as the heating season is in full swing. According to her, the procedure was to start much earlier and not in the height of the season.