Germany seizes control of Gazprom supply arm
The German government has taken hold of Gazprom’s unit in the country, and put it into the hands of the regulator to prevent a Russian-backed takeover of the business.
Economy Minister Robert Habeck argued the move was key to ensuring supply security.
He said: “The order of the trust administration serves to protect public security and order and to maintain the security of supply. This step is mandatory.”
The Kremlin-backed fossil fuel giant ditched Gazprom Germania earlier this month following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with the West ramping up sanctions on Russian banks and oligarchs.
All voting rights in Gazprom Germania will be moved to the regulator – the Bundesnetzagentur – which will assume control until at least the end of September.
It will now be entitled to remove executives and hire new staff.
“Our goal will be to run Gazprom Germania in the interests of Germany and Europe,” explained regulator chief Klaus Mueller.
The company is an energy trading, storage and transmission specialist that supplies gas to German businesses.
Its intertwined network of units includes trader Wingas and storage firm Astora, which operates 6bn cubic metres of underground gas caverns in Germany and Austria.
Prior to the government’s intervention, JSC Palmary and Gazprom export business services LLC were set to buy the supplier.
“We won’t leave energy infrastructure subject to arbitrary decisions by the Kremlin,” explained Habeck.
While Germany has stopped short of energy sanctions, it is looking to maintain gas storage levels at 90 per cent of capacity ahead of this winter.
It is also considering slowing down its phasing out of coal power and nuclear energy.
The government is also looking to ramp up renewables, and the latest research from Rystad Energy reveals wind power is now dominating its energy mix.
Its latest research suggests wind energy reached an all-time high of 20.6 terawatt-hours (TWh) last month.
Overall, it contributed to 77 per cent of all renewable energy output for the month, and represented 45 per cent of Germany’s entire energy mix.
Comparing performance to previous years reveals that generation in February was a whopping 80 per cent higher than March 2021.
This will be welcome news for the government amid soaring wholesale costs and geopolitical tensions.
Gazprom uncertainty spreads across Europe
Gazprom has been in the sights of European Union (EU) regulators for months over allegations that it was holding back gas that could have been released to lower soaring prices.
Pressure has only grown since the invasion of Ukraine, but the company has escaped sanctions so far with the EU remaining split on the prospect of banning Russian energy imports.
Sources told news agency Reuters week its offices in Germany were raided by EU antitrust authorities last week.
Last week, Germany triggered the first phase of its emergency gas plans – following the Kremlin’s demand for supplies to be paid, or at least converted to, roubles.
Alongside the German supply army, Gazrpom has also ditched its UK company.
Downing Street is reportedly weighing up whether to place the UK group, Gazprom Energy, into special administration.
Ministers drawing up the plans, which could cause taxpayers £4bn, if it fails to reassure financial counter-parties about an ownership change, according to Sky News.
The potential buyer remains undisclosed, with Gazprom announcing last week it had “ceased its participation” in its British division without providing details of any new owners.