Bemol Retail SRL, one of the investors in the international free port of Giurgiulesti, has received state subsidies over eight years in the amount of 1.077 billion lei, which is equivalent to $56 million. Only 15% of this money came in the form of a loan for the development of the Giurgiulesti port. Former Minister of Economy and Infrastructure Ciril Gaburici, after stating that Bemol has no obligation to invest in the port, was appointed president of the Bemol board of directors.
The government of the Republic of Moldova provided this subsidy to Bemol Retail to promote investment in the development of the Giurgiulesti port. However, according to Matthias von Tuher, manager of Danube Logistics, most of the subsidy went to the opening of dozens of Bemol gas stations and a loan provided by Danube Logistics.
“After the sale of Danube Logistics SRL in 2011, Aliyev, through his company New Ventures Capital NV, ordered to stop any further investments in the gas station network,” said the current head of Danube Logistics.
The Azerbaijani businessman no longer wanted to invest in the port of Giurgiulesti after his company Easeur sold its 80% stake in Danube Logistics.
Thus, out of a subsidy of more than one billion lei provided by the state to Bemol Retail to promote investment in the port of Giurgiulesti, only 151 million lei came from Danube Logistics for the development of the port, which is slightly more than 15%.
According to the Investment Agreement, Danube Logistics undertakes to build port infrastructure, Bemol Refinery – an oil refinery with a capacity of 1,000,000-2,000,000 tons of oil, and Bemol Retail – to develop a network of up to 50 gas stations.
Today, 17 years after the conclusion of the investment agreement, which is considered a state secret, Bemol Refinery has not fulfilled its obligations to build the refinery. Referring to this obligation, Rafik Aliyev noted that Bemol Retail is working strictly in accordance with the Investment Agreement, fulfilling all its clauses.
For its part, the government did not offer Danube Logistics the remaining 65 hectares of land needed to expand the port’s “business park”, build a refinery, and other projects.
According to the investment agreement, Danube Logistics was supposed to receive a 99-year lease on a 120-hectare plot of land for port development. However, so far, the company has only taken possession of 55 hectares.
The government has not even fulfilled its obligation to restore the road that connects Giurgiulesti to Chisinau. Finally, Moldovan officials did not force Bemol Refinery to build a refinery in the port, a crucial investment in this strategic goal. The Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure refused to answer journalists’ questions.
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