With a net income of more than €365,000 in 2022, when he also bought an apartment in Abu Dhabi, Transgaz CEO Sterian Ion says it seems normal for him to have an iPhone paid for by a state-owned company. , while he uses it at work. Other directors are needed because of the complexity and risks of the business, he says. However, he claims that he suspended orders for new iPhones on Monday and that he will explain all this to the prime minister.

Prime Minister Marcel Cholaku said last week that he would summon Transgaz executives for an explanation after buying an iPhone and that he would ask CEO Sterian Ion to pay for his phone from his own salary, which is not exactly small.

Asked by HotNews.ro on Monday if the prime minister had called him to explain the purchase, the head of Transgaz said that only a framework agreement had been signed at the moment and that he had ordered the order to be suspended. for new iPhones.

• “This is a framework agreement, it does not mean that we will buy hundreds of phones. We order only when we need it. We can take one phone or no phone or all the phones transferred there.
• There are about 34 phones with better performance, but this morning I ordered not to buy any of them.
• The prime minister will probably invite me and officially hand it over, and I will also take people from procurement and technical specialists and explain to them what it is about,” Sterian Ion told HotNews.ro on Monday.

What if I work and use it for business? The head of Transgaz admits that he has an iPhone given by the company

When asked if he has an iPhone paid for by the state company, Sterian Ion admitted that he received such a phone 1-2 years ago, which he uses for work.

“If I work for a company and use it for the company?!” said Sterian Ion, who explained why other executives also need such high-performance phones.

• “Transgaz provides gas transport and system balancing. Since September, we have the entire transport system from the Republic of Moldova, including gas that reaches Transnistria. Directors go to the field, they have an application with an electronic signature, they sign documents directly from the phone, wherever they are,” he said.

Sterian Ion on an apartment in Abu Dhabi: My son is a doctor, my daughter-in-law is a doctor, and they will probably go to work there too

The latest public figures show the Transgaz chief’s net income rose 10.5% to more than €365,000 in 2022, when he also bought an apartment in the United Arab Emirates.

The income of the CEO of Transgaz has a constant and a variable component.

• In 2021, his fixed remuneration was 364,478 lei net, and his variable remuneration was 1,286,101 lei net.
• In 2022, the fixed remuneration was 392,368 lei net, and the variable – 1,432,643 lei net.

Sterian Ion claims that he has “the 4th salary from Transgaz” and he would not collect this money if he did not meet the performance indicators.

• “We have performance metrics, over 1,056 metrics that we’ve hit from 100% to 550%, and that’s why we’re getting these bonuses. If I didn’t meet the criteria, I wouldn’t get any bonus,” Sterian Ion told HotNews.ro.

Also in 2022, according to the latest wealth declaration, Sterian Ion purchased an apartment with an area of ​​​​almost 100 square meters in the United Arab Emirates.

• “This is not a luxury apartment, it is an average apartment in Abu Dhabi that I got for my children. My son is a doctor, my daughter-in-law is a doctor, probably they will also go there to work.
• That was the point, not for recreation or tourism. I don’t like it there. The temperature is high, the temperature in hotels and restaurants is 16-18 degrees, and because of the temperature difference, every time I was there in delegations, I came back with a cold,” he said.

The purchase of iPhones for Transgaz executives has become a tradition. Contracts concluded in previous years

In addition to Cholak’s budget cuts, Transgaz ended the tender for the purchase of iPhones and the latest generation of Android phones, a procedure that the prime minister expressed his displeasure with and asked for an explanation. Since Čolak said nothing, Transgaz went ahead with the auction and this month awarded the framework agreement to Dante International, the company that owns eMAG.ro, the country’s largest online trading platform.

However, the data of the Electronic State Procurement System indicate that Transgaz also concluded the following contracts for the purchase of iPhones in previous years:

• 1. On November 11, 2020, Transgaz signed a contract with Treasure Island worth more than 1.4 million lei for the purchase of 960 mobile phones, of which 100 iPhones released in 2019 are equipped with iOS 13 and the Apple A13 Bionic processor.
• 2. On October 23, 2019, Transgaz signed with Rombiz Impex a contract worth more than 470,000 lei aimed at the purchase of 390 phones, 10 of which, according to technical data, are iPhones with iOS 12 and Apple A12 Bionic. processor
• 3. On October 26, 2018, Transgaz signed a contract with AMS Expert Consult worth more than 460,000 lei for the purchase of more than 300 phones, of which 50 were iPhones equipped with iOS 11 and A11 Bionic processors.
• 4. On May 28, 2018, Transgaz signed a contract with AMS Expert Consult for the amount of more than 87,000 lei for the purchase of 20 phones, of which 15 are iPhone-type phones with iOS 11 and A11 Bionic Hexa-Core processors, according to technical specifications.

Cholaku was called by the management of Transgaz after buying an iPhone

Last week, Prime Minister Marcel Cholaku announced that he would call the management of Transgaz for an explanation after buying the latest generation iPhone. “Mr. Sterian (born Iona Sterian, head of Transgaz) has to pay for the phone from his own salary, because it is still small. I will officially ask him about it,” Marcel Čolak said on Thursday before the government meeting.

The prime minister made these statements after HotNews.ro reported that, despite the dissatisfaction expressed after the start of the auction of the latest generation iPhone, Transgaz continued the procedure and concluded this contract this month.

• SEE TRANSGAS EXPLANATION

According to the company’s report, as of June 30, 2023, the executive management of the company was carried out by 34 directors. On the same date, Transgaz had 3,961 employees.

• Read more: Cholaku: Mr. Shteryan should pay for his phone from his own salary, because it is still small / Transgaz management summoned by the prime minister after buying an iPhone