PRESS: Germany protects N Stream-2 against change in legislation

MOSCOW, Jan 29 (PRIME) – Attempts to regulate the Nord Stream 2 project contradicts European and international legislation, Germany said in its legal opinion on draft amendments to the E.U. Gas Directive, business daily Vedomosti reported on Tuesday, citing a copy of the document.

The amendments allow the E.U. to extend the norms of European energy legislation, which splits ownership of transit and producing firms and demands access of third companies to pipelines, on pipelines of third countries. Germany said that the amendments are aimed at controlling only the pipelines of Russia’s Gazprom, and are not needed.

The Nord Stream-2 project envisages construction of two lines of a natural gas pipeline with an annual capacity of up to 55 billion cubic meters, running from the Russian shore to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Gazprom will implement the project together with Germany’s E.ON and BASF, Royal Dutch Shell, OMV, and France’s Engie.

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