Polish Briefing: The EC counts on Member States’ mandate to negotiate Nord Stream 2

What goes on in Poland on the 6th of March.

The EC counts on Member States’ mandate to negotiate Nord Stream 2

The European Commission has expressed its readiness to negotiate a treaty on the conditions for the implementation of Community law in relation to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project with Russia.

Dominique Ristori, head of the Directorate-General for Energy in the European Commission (DG ENER), declared that the Commission is ready to negotiate the deal on Nord Stream 2 from 2017, if it receives the mandate of the Council of the European Union. He spoke at a meeting of ministers responsible for energy, during which Germany announced that they would like to commission determination of the conditions for the implementation of EU law by the national regulator.

– Before the revision (of the Gas Directive – ed.), we suggested the adoption of a mandate to negotiate with Russia. This mandate lies on the Council table and if they want to push it forward, we will accept our responsibility in the negotiations, provided we receive such a mandate – said Ristori.

The Council of the European Union rejected the Commission’s call for a negotiating mandate in 2017. However, in 2018, it adopted a revision of the gas directive, which subordinates EU law to German territory and territorial waters, and allows to start negotiations on the subject of the remaining part of the gas pipeline operated by Nord Stream 2 AG, a 100 percent company owned by Gazprom.

Naftogaz: If Russia stops gas supplies through Ukraine, the risk of war will increase

After the launch of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, Ukraine is threatened with a total loss of the role of the transit state for the supply of Russian gas to Europe – warns the CEO of Naftogaz Andrei Kobolev.

– We will completely lose transit because there is still Turkish Stream pipeline, which will probably be launched by the end of 2019 – he said. According to Kobolev, the necessity to use the Ukrainian gas transmission system prevents “Russian aggression”. However, after the launch of Nord Stream 2, the risk of war will increase significantly.

Kobolev stressed that this does not stop European companies from investing in the aforementioned project being the subject of controversy in the European Union. He again proposed “classic partnership” and the admission of foreign companies to the management of Ukrainian gas pipelines to Europe in exchange for investments.

Earlier, the Russian Minister of Energy Alexander Novak said that due to the age of the transmission system in Ukraine, gas transmission to Europe is 2 to 2,5 times more expensive than other routes, such as Yamal-Europe or Nord Stream 1, which was reported by BiznesAlert.pl.

On 1 January 2020, the contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, terminated in 2009, expires. At present, before the arbitration court, Naftogaz demands a revision of transit tariffs in 2018-2019.