Kadyrov puzzles Kremlin with writing off gas debts

The issue of writing off Chechnya's debts for the supplied natural gas has put the Russian authorities in a difficult position; the Kremlin is at a loss, experts say.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 16, the Chechen Prosecutor's Office (PO) reported that a Grozny court had obliged the Gazprom to write off the Chechen population's "hopeless debts" in the amount of over nine billion roubles. The company has appealed against this court judgement. The Russian General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) has upheld the Gazprom's refusal to write off the above debts.

The residents of Chechnya and lawyers interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" stated that the writing off would hardly touch on ordinary citizens.

Given regular campaigns of collecting payment of utility bills from republic's residents, the Chechnya's indebtedness for gas could form due to underground (clandestine) enterprises, Mikhail Krutikhin, an analyst, suggests.

It is impossible to imagine the share of underground oil refineries in the structure of Chechnya's debt for gas, says Alexander Frolov, the deputy director general of the National Energy Institute. He treats the bewilderment of residents of Chechnya about the formation of gas debts as justified. According to his story, the payment discipline is growing in the region, including in Chechnya.

Having demanded to write off the gas debts, the head of Chechnya has opposed himself to the federal centre, creating serious inconveniences for the Kremlin, Alexei Malashenko, a political analyst, believes. It will be equally difficult for the authorities of the Russian Federation to refuse Kadyrov and to support him, he has stated.