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Moldova's Energocom and Greece's DEPA sign framework contract for purchasing gas
CHISINAU. April 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Moldovan state-owned company Energocom has signed a contract with the Greek gas operator DEPA for the purchase of gas, Moldovan Energy Minister Viktor Parlikov said on Friday on social networks following his visit to Greece.
The document was signed on April 6 during the visit.
“Greece is the main gateway in southern Europe for liquefied natural gas (LNG), more than half of which comes from the United States,” Parlikov said.
“Moldovan state-owned company Energocom is the first and so far the only company in the world that has practical experience using the “vertical corridor” Greece-Bulgaria-Romania-Moldova-Ukraine. Energocom’s experience last season with the use of the Greece-Bulgaria interconnector showed the feasibility of using the Tran-Balkan gas pipeline in reverse mode,” the minister said.
Cooperation between Moldova and Greece in the field of natural gas will allow better use of underground gas storage facilities in Ukraine to improve the security of the gas supply to Central Europe in the winter, he said. Thanks to the contract between Energocom and DEPA, Moldova “will be able to purchase gas, taking advantage of favorable market conditions,” Parlikov wrote.
The EFET (European Federation of Energy Traders) contract is a framework contract and precedes any sales contract. The conclusion of this type of contract is mandatory for companies operating in the European Union, according to Energocom.
“Greece is currently a strategic center in terms of available energy sources. There is one LNG terminal there, and the second will be ready by the end of the year. This terminal receives gas from several geographical points, from the East, from the USA and Africa, and the prices are favorable,” Viktor Bynzar, Acting Director of Energocom, said in a press release.
During the visit to Greece, the Moldovan delegation met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Economic Diplomacy Konstantinos Fragkogiannis, the director of the Gastrade company (managing the LNG terminal project in Alexandroupolis) Konstantinos Sifnaios and the director of DEPA Konstantinos Xifaras.
Until the fall of 2021, Moldova bought gas exclusively from Gazprom. Then the country began to buy gas from alternative sources, specifically from Romania.