‘No heating, no light’: Moldovans fear looming energy shortage as Russia halts gas supplies

Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom is set to halt gas supplies to the European Union candidate country over an alleged $709-million debt for past supplies. On a frigid morning in Moldova’s capital, 39-year-old postal worker Petru Murzin braces for a difficult winter as he fears a looming energy shortage could leave many Moldovans with “no heating, no light.” His concerns aren’t unfounded. “I hope we’ll look at this seriously and not waste power on not-so-useful things.” After Gazprom announced it would halt gas flows, Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean accused Moscow of using energy “as a political weapon” and said his government does not recognize the debt cited by the Russian energy giant, which he said has been “invalidated by an international audit.” “This decision confirms once again the intention of the Kremlin to leave the inhabitants of the Transnistrian region without light and heat in the middle of the winter,” he said. Moldovan President Maia Sandu criticized Russia on Monday for Gazprom’s decision and said that the country has gas supplies “for the heating season” and that measures would be taken “to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply,” adding that plans are also in place to provide humanitarian aid to residents in Transnistria. And to use energy rationally.” Olga Rosca, an advisor to Sandu, told the AP that most of Moldova, excluding Transnistria, “shouldn’t see major disruptions” and that “cheaper electricity previously supplied from the Transnistrian region will be replaced by more expensive imports from the EU.” “In the Transnistrian region, however, the situation will be much more serious,” she said, “and any crisis there will inevitably affect all of Moldova.” Moldova has repeatedly claimed Russia is conducting a vast “hybrid war” by meddling in elections, funding anti-government protests and running vast disinformation campaigns to try to topple the government and derail the country’s EU aspirations.