Despite growing resistance in Europe, Gazprom’s project called Nord Stream 2 is gaining further approvals. Meanwhile, as BiznesAlert.pl wrote, the Commission is considering an amicable settlement of the antitrust investigation against the company. Member of the European Parliament Jacek Saryusz-Wolski commented on the issue.
– The EC-Gazprom settlement is nothing more than a „pardon” of the monopoly in exchange for a vague promise of improvement and an example of applying double standards, that is hard against US companies like Microsoft, Apple, Google, and soft against Russian – says our interlocutor.
– It is also surprising and at the same time an „error in art” of negotiations, a complete separation of antimonopoly proceedings against Gazprom from the Nord Stream 2 case – says Jacek Saryusz-Wolski. – The Commission renounces the powerful instrument of pressure on Russia at its disposal to stop the construction of Nord Stream 2.
– Gazprom should receive a well-deserved huge financial penalty, up to 10% of turnover, the Commission did not hesitate to pay EUR 12 billion to Apple, or Russia should stop Nord Stream 2, which will further strengthen Gazprom’s monopolistic position on the EU market – summed up the interlocutor of BiznesAlert.pl.
The European Commission is considering a settlement with Gazprom, although the matter is still uncertain. The Nord Stream 2 project gathers further approvals – it has all in Germany, one of two in Finland. It is waiting for the consent of Russia, Sweden and Denmark. The Danes are considering the lack of consent for the construction of the section in their territorial waters. They may disagree on the grounds of security and foreign policy arguments thanks to the law they adopted last year.