European Commission throws book at Russia’s Nord Stream 2 natural gas link
The European Commission, watchdog of the EU treaties, is throwing everything it has at Russia’s planned 55 Bcm/year Nord Stream 2 pipeline across the Baltic Sea to Germany in its efforts to keep Russian natural gas transit flows to the EU through Ukraine a viable option.
It plans to propose in November revised legislation that aims to apply the EU’s internal energy market rules — known as the third energy package — to offshore gas pipelines to the EU. These rules include allowing third-party access to pipelines, unbundling pipeline operators from parent energy supply companies, setting non-discriminatory tariffs and requiring more transparent operations.
But speculation over whether forcing Nord Stream 2 to apply third-party access rules would prompt an end to Russian state-owned Gazprom’s export monopoly, for example, is probably wishful thinking. Gazprom’s Russian rival Rosneft may be ready and waiting, but it’s difficult to see the benefit for the Russian state of two Russian companies competing with each other for European customers.
The EC has said it wants the new rules for offshore gas pipelines to be in force by end-2018, in plenty of time to capture Nord Stream 2, which is due online by end-2019. That timetable would require the European Parliament and the EU Council, representing the EU’s 28 national governments, to fast-track their debate and approval of the proposals — and neither the speed nor the approvals are guaranteed.
