NS2 AG seeks 'independent operator' status

Responding to a request from the German network regulator, Swiss Nord Stream 2 AG (NS2), a wholly owned subsidiary of Russian gas exporter Gazprom, requested  June 11 that it be granted the status of an independent operator, it said June 24.

In the meantime, NS2 said it continues its ongoing litigation and arbitration proceedings in relation to the 2019 enacted amendments of the EU Gas Directive (2019/692), namely the appeal against the rejection of its application for a derogation at the German courts currently pending with the Dusseldorf Higher Regional Court, the action for annulment at the Court of Justice of the EU (the appeal currently pending at the Court of Justice), and the ongoing arbitration proceedings concerning breaches of the Energy Charter Treaty by the European Union in the light of the amendments to the Gas Directive, it said. The charter is designed to protect the interests of investors, which Gazprom claims have been violated. 

The application for certification by NS2 does not imply any change or moderation of NS2's legal position on the amended Gas Directive or the objectives that it continues to firmly pursue with the aforementioned litigations/arbitration, it said.

Germany's regulator can make this certification decision as it is in Germany that the subsea pipeline lands. The pipeline is now complete and being prepared for filling with gas before commissioning can begin.

According to the directive, energy supply companies may still own and operate gas or electricity networks but must do so through a subsidiary. All important decisions must be taken independent of the parent company.