OREANDA-NEWS. July 15, 2010. This was announced by the National Agency for Energy Regulation. According to Mariana Botezatu, ANRE Director, the agency received from JS Moldovagaz a confirmation of new purchasing price, fixed by JSC Gazprom for the IIIrd quarter of 2010 to the amount of USD260.67 per 1000 m?, that is by 3.1% more than in the IInd quarter.

According to ANRE calculations, the additional expenditures of JS Moldovagaz for purchasing of gas at higher price in the IIIrd quarter won’t exceed the stipulated by tarifs methodology frame of financial deviations from controllable expenses in the amount of 5%. That’s why the Agency decided to leave the rates unchanged.

The Director also noted that the ANRE foresaw the increase in purchasing prices for the natural gas in the IInd half year and put in the current rate the average purchasing price for April-December 2010 period to the amount of USD262.95 per 1000 m?. According to purchasing price for natural gas for the IIIrd quarter, confirmed by JSC Gazprom, the forecasted average purchasing price will amount to USD264.42 per 1000 m?, that is only by 0.6% higher than the price, forecasted by the ANRE.

According to the agreement, signed in 2006 between JS Moldovagaz and JSC Gazprom, the purchasing price for natural gas in the third quarter of current year was fixed on the basis of the average price for natural gas, delivered by Gazprom in the European countries as of January 1st, 2010, taking into account the decreasing coefficient 0.9 for Moldova and the PLATT’S quotations for gas oil and fuel oil during the last 9 months.

The last time, ANRE revised the rates for natural gas at the suggestion of JS Moldovagaz on May 14th, 2010. By ANRE’s estimates, if the exchange rate of the national currency and PLATT’S quotations for oil products don’t undergo the considerabale changes and develop according to the prognosis of the Agency specialists, the rates for natural gas won’t be revised till the end of 2010.