CHISINAU, June 5 (RIA Novosti) - A governmental delegation from Moldova will arrive in Moscow Monday for further talks over Russian natural gas supplies in the second half of 2006, the prime minister said.
As part of Russian energy giant Gazprom's attempt to raise natural gas prices for former Soviet countries to market levels, the state-controlled concern is seeking to increase the price for Moldova from $110 per 1,000 cu m in the second quarter of this year to about $160 in the second half of the year.
"At this stage, negotiations are progressing slowly but we hope that this visit will yield a final contract," Prime Minister Vasile Tarlev said.
Tarlev declined to comment on the possible price increase and only said that the parties to the talks had still failed to agree a final figure.
Gazprom's new price formula for the former Soviet Union led to a row with neighboring Ukraine and a suspension of gas supplies in January, but a deal was soon clinched and supplies resumed.
