Alleged $709 million debt is unconfirmed or unenforceable

September 6th 2023, Chișinău - The Republic of Moldova’s Minister of Energy, Victor Parlicov, has unveiled today the results of Moldovagaz’s debt audit conducted by global giants, the UK’s Wikborg Rein, and Norway’s Forensic Risk Alliance. A public report is now accessible on the Ministry of Energy’s website, detailing significant discrepancies in the claimed $709 million debt by Gazprom, Moldovagaz's main stakeholder. The report, alongside the Moldovan government’s proposed steps forward, will be examined by the Moldovagaz Supervisory Board.

Key findings include:

- Lack of proof: Almost $276 million of the alleged debt, spanning 1991-2002, lacks supporting documentation. Despite auditor repeated requests, Gazprom hasn’t produced evidence, raising red flags on its credibility.

- Exorbitant penalties: Documents reveal nearly 50% of the debt comprises late fees, accrued at steep interest rates of around 0.35% daily in USD.

- Non-enforceable claims: $400 million of the debt is unenforceable under both Moldovan and Russian laws due to 3-year expiry limits on arbitration decisions made from 2008-2020.

- Unsanctioned expenditures: Moldovagaz outlaid $135  million on various projects without the approval of the regulatory body ANRE. These include unapproved investments, the construction of a new headquarters, and network losses.

- Counterclaims: The audit report highlights Gazprom's own shortfall of around $160 million in gas transit fees from 2007. Gazprom's fee-splitting with Tiraspoltransgaz, the gas supplier in Moldova’s unrecognized separatist Transnistrian region, breaches transit contract norms and global practices.

- Past misdoings: According to the audit report, in the 1990s, transmission networks were undervalued and transferred to Gazsnabtranzit (Moldovagaz’s precursor) in dubious debt settlements.

Post-audit, the Moldovan Government, stepping in as a shareholder, proposes that Moldovagaz pay $8.6 million in confirmed debt to Gazprom.

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said: “Citizens of the Republic of Moldova should not bear the burden of non-existent debts to Gazprom. Following the external audit, we firmly reject the alleged debts claimed by Gazprom's subsidiary, Moldovagaz.”