The head of Moldova’s breakaway region Transnistria has urged residents to burn firewood for heating and warned that blackouts cannot be avoided, after Moscow stopped supplying gas via Ukraine.

By bne IntelliNews The Moldovan separatist region of Transnistria has entered its third day of a severe energy crisis following the cut-off of Russian gas supplies, prompting widespread disruptions to industrial companies and public services.

Moscow breakaway region of Transnistria halted almost all industrial activity except for food production, following the end of Russian gas flows through Ukraine, Interfax reported.

Moldova had previously offered to assist the Russian-occupied region in securing gas via European platforms to mitigate the energy crisis. Transnistrian officials rejected the offer, saying they believe Gazprom will resume Russian gas supplies.

The breakaway region of Moldova suffered a direct blow when the flow of Russian gas to central and eastern Europe via Ukraine was cut off yesterday

Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom says it will halt gas supplies to Moldova starting on Jan. 1, citing alleged unpaid debt by the east European country.

Some 1,500 high-rise buildings in Transnistria are currently without heating and hot water, and nearly 72,000 homes are without gas.