Beltransgaz unilaterally, without agreement with Gazprom, pays for purchased gas from Russia at last year's price. It was reported on May 19 by a competent source in Moscow. According to the source, it resulted that only in January and February Beltransgaz's arrears reached 94 million dollars.
«Acting this way, Beltransgaz will increase its debt to Gazprom and by the end of the year it will be about half a billion dollars», said a source, IA REGNUM-Belarus informs.
This year, Gazprom, according to the contract for gas supply to Beltransgaz, should supply 22.1 billion cubic meters of gas. In the first quarter of this year, Gazprom supplied to Belarus about 6.4 billion cubic meters. During January-April period there were supplied 7.9 billion cubic meters.
According to the source, the price of gas, which, in accordance with the contract, calculated by the formula using the 0.9 discount rate, for the first quarter was 169.22 dollars per thousand cubic meters, in the second quarter it was equal to 184.79 dollars per thousand cubic meters, while the average gas price for Belarus in 2010 will be 185-187 dollars.
«However, Beltransgaz, referring to last year’s oral agreement of the presidents of Russia and Belarus pays for supplied gas basing on the price of 150 dollars per thousand cubic meters», the source said, adding that «for the first quarter of this year Beltransgaz paid only 964.4 million dollars».
«As a result, the arrears of the company to Gazprom for January- March 2010 amount to 137.5 million dollars (about 12.5% of the total payment for specified period.) Beltransgaz should make gas supply payment for April till May 23», informed the source in Moscow.
