Moscow, July 2 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has ordered restoration of power supplies to Belarus after the former Soviet neighbour paid its arrears on electricity bills, the president’s spokeswoman said Saturday.
Belarus has been struggling to pay for electricity from Russia amid an economic crisis that has left its hard currency in short supply. In early June, Belarus’s electricity debt amounted to 1.5 billion rubles ($54 million).
Medvedev’s spokeswoman Natalia Timakova said Saturday the president has given the instructions to restart power supplies after a telephone conversation Saturday with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin who reported that Belarus has paid off its debts for April and May.
‘Considering that Minsk (the capital of Belarus) has met its financial obligations, the president ordered power supplies to be resumed to Belarus as stipulated by the contracts,’ Timakova said.
Russia’s state power trader Inter RAO halved electricity supplies to Belarus June 9 as a warning and then halted deliveries late June 28.
Russia meets 12 percent of Belarus’s energy needs.
–IANS/RIA Novosti
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