Page 15 - EurOil Week 28 2021

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Moldova faces fuel crisis BGN173mn (€88.5mn) tender for company brings gas from Bulgaria, near Negotino.
11 companies participated in the
Earlier this year, NER and North
after price caps are to carry out the investment project but Macedonia’s state-owned electricity
generation utility ESM signed a
only six were allowed to file financial offers.
enforced DZZD Canpipe BG offered to do the job for memorandum of cooperation to invest in
a project for the construction of a floating
BGN164mn.
Most filling stations in Moldova as of this However, the five companies that lost liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and
week started selling only 10 litres of fuel per the tender have filed complaints and CPC a gas-power plant off the coastal city of
car. A lack of high-grade diesel and petrol found four of them reasonable – of DZZD Alexandroupolis in Greece.
has been reported since early July, when International Gas, DZZD Nova Gas 2021,
new regulations setting maximum prices for Bonati S.P.A. – branche Bulgaria and
automobile fuel prices came into force. consortium IBS-Intergas. Lithuania’s Klaipedos Nafta
Public transportation vehicles get 20 All companies claim the way the winner
litres and trucks 30 litres. Farmers have was selected by state-owned gas network posts 24% slump in 1H21
complained about fuel retailers refusing to operator Bulgartransgaz has breached the
deliver diesel at the wholesale price - as they law, Dnevnik reported. revenue to €30mn
have usually done in the past. The claims will delay the construction of
Such limitations are illegal, the authorities the gas link, which would be completed at Lithuania’s state-owned oil product and
warned. the end of 2022 or the beginning of 2023. liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals
It remains unclear whether the situation Bulgaria has to build 62km of the operator Klaipedos Nafta posted €230.1mn
has been generated by the retailers’ genuine interconnector, which will connect the in revenue for January-June, down 24%
lack of fuel - or if it is a way of putting national transmission networks of the two from €39.7mn in the same period last year.
pressure on the new ruling party to remove countries and secure diversification of gas In June alone, y/y, its revenue went
price limitations. In any case, it is linked to deliveries. It should have capacity of up to down by 6.5% to €5.8mn, according to
the new price-capping regulations. 1.8bn cubic metres of natural gas per year. Klaipedos Nafta’s preliminary financial
The energy market regulator ANRE, Initially, the two countries planned to results released via the Nasdaq Vilnius
which is the body that implements the price complete the interconnector in 2020. Stock Exchange.
limitations, explained that the regulations Preliminary sales revenue of the
were indeed problematic and that it was company’s oil terminals for January-May
not consulted when the price limitations North Macedonia, Greece stood at €10.8mn, down 33.3%. And
were set. ANRE said that it was placed preliminary sales revenue for June went up
in a situation in which it must enforce in ink deal on construction of by 8.3% to €2.6mn.
an extremely short time legal provisions Preliminary sales revenue of the
“that contained serious legal, technical and €100mn gas link Klaipeda LNG terminal for the first six
conceptual errors.” months of this year dropped 19% to
However, the market regulator issued a The governments of North Macedonia €17.9mn and went down by 16.7% to
statement explaining that there is no reason and Greece signed an agreement on the €3.6mn in June alone, y/y.
the fuel retailers should encounter problems construction of a cross-border natural gas The Lithuanian state owns 72.47% of
since the prices were calculated based on interconnector worth €100mn on July 9. Klaipedos Nafta, and Achemos Grupe
June 15 Platts fuel quotations, which have The gas interconnector with Greece is owns 10.43%..
decreased, meanwhile. a project supported by the EU and bilateral
In their turn, the wholesalers complain donors to the Western Balkans, and will
about the higher prices that they have to pay help North Macedonia to ensure security of Turkish central bank sells
- compared to the Platts quotations included gas supply and liquidity on the gas market,
in the new regulations. as well as to provide access to natural gas FX to pipeline operator
The major fuel suppliers on the Moldovan through the Southern Gas Corridor
market are three Romanian companies with North Macedonia will contribute €54mn Botas first time in 2021
refineries in Romania: Rompetrol, Lukoil and of the total investment, the government said
OMV Petrom. in a statement. Turkey’s central bank has sold $269mn to
North Macedonia’s state-owned company government-run natural gas importer Botas
National Energy Resources (NER) and in June for the first time since December 2020,
Bulgaria’s competition Greece’s gas operator DESFA are expected to data from the central bank showed on July 7.
Since December 2014, the central bank
soon sign an agreement that would guarantee
watchdog halts construction the construction of the interconnector. has sold a total of $45bn to Botas to subsidise
domestic natural gas prices with providing
The interconnector that will be built
of gas link to Serbia between the villages of Bogorodica and Botas with cheaper FX.y
Stojakovo will represent another delivery

Bulgaria’s Competition Protection point for natural gas besides the existing
Committee (CPC) halted the implementation one that brings gas from Russia via Bulgaria, NEO completes Zennor
of a contract related to the construction of the municipality said in the statement, after
the gas link to Serbia due to complaints by mayor Sasho Pockov met officials from state- purchase
bidders against the selected winner for the run Natural Energy Resources.
investment project – DZZD Canpipe BG, The gas pipeline from Greece will be NEO Energy has announced the completion
Dnevnik news outlet reported on July 14. connected with the other pipeline, which of its acquisition of Zennor Petroleum

Week 28 15•July•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P15