Moldovan government demands that parliament establishes emergency state

Chisinau, 22 October /MOLDPRES/ - The cabinet of ministers, at a today’s government meeting, approved a decision on the declaring of emergency state for 30 days, the government’s communication and protocol department has reported.   

„All steps which we undertake now are necessary, in order to ensure the country’s energy security, to be able to allocate financial resources for buying gas from alternative sources and to make sure that we re-bring the pressure in the natural gas system to the proper level. We will also take decision to allocate crude oil from the state reserve, in order to help companies which can diversify the energy sources,’’ Prime Minister Gavrilita said in the beginning of the meeting.     

According to the document, on the period of the emergency state, during 22 October – 20 November, the Commission for Emergency Situations (CSE) will issue instructions on the establishment of a special regime of purchasing natural gas in quick regime; earmarking of financial means to ensure the buying of the necessary gas volumes; adoption of needed decisions, in order to ensure quick actions of supply with natural gas, including by derogation from the normative provisions; instructing, if necessary, the rationalization of the consumption of natural gas also from other energy resources; adoption of decisions on empowering the providers and distributors to act in order to purchase, carry and distribute natural gas all over the country; coordinating the work of mass media entities to inform the residents about the reasons and scope of the emergency situation, etc.      

„I specify that, on 13 October, CSE ascertained the appearance of an emergency situation, of alert on the natural gas market. Despite the actions undertaken, the instruments used at present are not enough for overcoming the emerged situation and the competences of the Commission do not provide the needed solutions and mechanisms. In this context, it is necessary that CSE approves certain urgent measures, decisions in quick terms, which envisage including derogations from the normative acts, which the current framework does not allow us,’’ the state secretary at the Infrastructure and Regional Development Ministry, Constantin Borosan, said.  

In the same context, Justice Minister Sergiu Litvinenco said that ‘’so that there are no interpretations alleging that the emergency state refers to other issues than the ones established by the parliament, I note that it is about exclusively decisions, measures dealing with the country’s supply with natural gas, in order not to hit Moldova’s energy security.’’   

PM Natalia Gavrilita stressed the need and correctness of the actions due to be undertaken. ‘’These powers will be used with good will. We will establish all necessary procedures, so that the decisions can be heard, monitored and we can report on them at the fit time, so that there is no doubt about their intention and effect. We will allocate money from the budget, we will empower operators to be able to access the market and ensure the country’s energy security,’’ the prime minister said.   

To overcome the alert situation on the natural gas market, the government voted also for the release of crude oil from the state reserves. Proceeding from the fact that the Termoelectrica stock company has already exhausted the available personal stock of crude oil, decision-makers ruled to release the quantity of 16,500 tons of crude oil from the state reserves.   

„The burning of the crude oil released will allow supplying the residents and institutions of social importance with electric energy, as well as thermal agent on the cold period of the year. The project’s goal is the state’s intervention in the settlement of the emergency situation emerged on the natural gas market, ensuring the country’s energy security and protecting the population. The burning of crude oil from state reserves ensures the process of delivery of thermal agent and electricity to the beneficiaries of the services of Termoelectrica, which will allow maintaining a stable tariff for the consumers and saving natural gas, without increasing the tariffs paid by the population,’’ Interior Minister Ana Revenco said.    

Therefore, the prime minister went to parliament to demand the MPs’ vote for the declaring the emergency state in Moldova.   

Photo: Government