The breakaway region of Moldova faces a blackout after a gas cut By Reuters

KYIV (Reuters) – Moldova’s pro-Russian separatist region of Transdniestria, left without Russian gas supplies from neighboring Ukraine, faced a prolonged power cut on Saturday, local authorities said.

The flow of Russian gas through Ukraine to central and eastern Europe stopped on New Year’s Day after a transit agreement between the warring countries expired and Kyiv refused to extend it.

Transdniestria, a predominantly Russian-speaking region that has sat alongside Moldova since it seceded in the last days of Soviet rule, has received gas from Russian giant Gazprom (MCX:) in pipelines crossing Ukraine.

This gas was used to power a heating plant that supplied electricity to the region and to a large part of Moldova under the control of a European-backed central government.

The self-proclaimed president of the region, Vadim Krasnoselsky, writing on the Telegram messaging service, said that the power cuts in various districts will be extended to four hours on Sunday.

The hourly reduction was first implemented on Friday evening after hot water and hot water were cut off. The breaks were then extended to three hours on Saturdays.

“Yesterday’s introduction to reduce wear was an experiment. And it confirmed that the one-hour break to keep the power system running was not enough,” Krasnoselsky wrote. “The power produced is not covering the demand which is rising dramatically.”

All industries except food production are closed. The official Telegraph news channel of the regional authorities announced the official closure on Saturday of the steel mill and bakery in the town of Rybnitsa.

Local officials have announced new measures to help residents, especially the elderly, and warned that night temperatures will drop to -10 Celsius (+14 Fahrenheit). Residents were told not to strain the area’s mobile phone network.

USE WOOD

The news agency warned against using heaters improperly after two residents died of carbon monoxide poisoning from the stove. Pictures on the Internet showed workers loading trucks with firewood for distribution.

“Don’t stop collecting firewood,” Krasnoselsky told residents. “It’s better to confirm your supply in advance, especially since the weather has been good so far.”

The Moldovan government blames Russia for the crisis and has asked Gazprom to move the gas through the Turkstream pipeline through Bulgaria and Romania.

Russia denies using gas as a coercive weapon against Moldova, and blames Kyiv for refusing to renew the gas transit agreement.

Power outages in Transnistria are a problem for Moldova especially because the enclave is home to a power plant that provides most of the energy for the government-controlled regions of Moldova at a stable and low cost.

Prime Minister Dorin Recean said on Friday that his country was facing a security crisis after Transdniestria imposed a blackout, but also said that the government in Chisinau had made other arrangements, with a combination of domestic production and supplies. of electricity from Romania.

Even before the suspension of supplies to Ukraine, Gazprom had said it would halt exports to Moldova on January 1 because of what Russia says are Moldova’s unpaid debts of $709 million. Moldova disagrees and puts the figure at $8.6 million.