Deputy PM says govt to mull OPAL pipeline situation Friday

ABU DHABI, Sep 12 (PRIME) -- The government and Russian gas giant Gazprom will discuss the decision of the E.U. court over the company’s access to capacities of the OPAL natural gas pipeline on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak told reporters on Thursday.

“We plan. Of course we plan. We will discuss it tomorrow,” he said.

The court ruling may be challenged, Kozak also said.

“We are considering the situation, the decision has just been made… A court decision is not a final decision, there is a challenging option. We are considering it.”

A representative of Germany’s Opal Gastransport, OPAL pipeline’s operator, told PRIME that the company has not yet received an order to limit Gazprom’s flow capacity from the state’s Federal Network Agency.

“We have taken the decision in consideration… but it is not a final decision,” the person said.

On Tuesday, the E.U. Court of Justice cancelled a ruling of the European Commission that allowed access of Gazprom to 100% of the OPAL capacities.

End