Russia's Gazprom seeks termination of Nord Stream 2 case in Poland
Russian gas conglomerate Gazprom filed objections to the Polish antimonopoly body UOKiK and petitioned the termination of the antimonopoly investigation procedure, the Russian company reported in its quarterly report.
According to the document, on April 30, 2018, Gazprom received notification from the Polish antimonopoly body UOKiK , which launched an antimonopoly investigation against the stakeholders of the Nord Stream 2 project, including Gazprom.
According to UOKiK, the financial agreements for the project pursue the same goal as the formation of a joint venture, so they require the consent of UOKiK. In accordance with the Polish law, the head of UOKiK has the right to impose sanctions against companies that “exercise concentration without obtaining the consent of UOKiK”. In particular, he can impose a fine up to 10% of the annual turnover.
In connection with this, on June 15, Gazprom sent an objection to UOKiK’s position and petitioned the termination of the investigation.
UOKiK provided a conclusion on the Nord Strean 2 in the summer of 2016. Gazprom and partners applied for a joint venture for the construction of a gas pipeline. They needed UOKiK’s solution since these companies have business in Poland. However, the Polish antimonopoly body did not approve their application and the particpants decided not to form a consortium. As a result, five companies decided to cover 50% of the cost for the construction of the gas pipeline instead of receiving 10% of the share of the joint venture each.