Latest news with #MatthiasWarnig
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Russia's Gazprom faces almost $20 billion in lawsuits from European energy firms
European energy firms have filed lawsuits against Russian energy giant Gazprom totaling 18 billion euros ($19.6 billion) over gas supply cuts, the Moscow Times reported on March 10. The claims stem from Gazprom's decision to drastically reduce gas deliveries to Europe in 2022 after Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded that payments be made in rubles. When European customers refused, Gazprom significantly cut supplies, including through the Nord Stream pipeline. The total amount of claims against Gazprom is nearly equal to its net revenues from gas exports, which include $10 billion from sales to Europe and Turkey, $7 billion from China, and $2 billion from Central Asia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The largest lawsuit was filed by German energy company Uniper, formerly Gazprom's biggest client in Germany and a co-investor in the Nord Stream 2 project. The company imported 20 billion cubic meters of Russian gas annually and is seeking 14.3 billion euros ($15.5 billion) in damages over losses incurred after Russian supplies were halted. Gazprom has responded with counterclaims in Russian courts, seeking to block legal proceedings outside Russia. The Financial Times reported on March 2 that Matthias Warnig, a former Stasi officer and longtime ally of Putin, has been lobbying the U.S. to support a potential restart of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The pipeline, which was co-financed by five European energy firms, was severely damaged in an apparent sabotage attack in September 2022. Read also: Moscow reportedly attacked by largest drone strike in full-scale war We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russia Today
02-03-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
US may launch Nord Stream 2
US investors are backing a plan to activate Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, the Financial Times has reported, citing sources. The conduit between Russia and Germany, which was never put into operation, may now serve as leverage in the ongoing Ukraine peace talks, the publication has suggested. The deal is being set up by Matthias Warnig, former executive director of the Swiss-based Nord Stream 2 operator, FT claimed on Sunday. Unnamed US investors are supporting the plan in a 'once unthinkable move that shows the breadth of [US President] Donald Trump's rapprochement with Moscow,' the outlet wrote. During his first term in office, Trump was critical of Nord Stream 2, targeting it with sanctions. In an interview in October, he even boasted that his actions had 'killed' the project. Since the outset of his second term in office, however, Trump has initiated a notable shift in US-Russia relations, seeking closer political and economic ties with Moscow and signaling that Washington could 'at some point' lift sanctions. Warnig's plan involves US businessmen reaching out to the White House as part of back-channel efforts to broker peace in Ukraine, the FT wrote. Some in Trump's team reportedly see Nord Stream 2 as potential leverage in peace talks. One US-led consortium of investors has reportedly drawn up the outlines of a post-sanctions deal with Nord Stream 2 owner Gazprom. The US investors would collect 'money for nothing,' claimed one senior US official. Nord Stream 2, which was intended to complement the already operational Nord Stream 1, was completed in 2021, but was never commissioned due to concerns over the EU's increased dependence on Russian energy. In September 2022, the pipelines were targeted by a series of underwater explosions, which caused severe leaks. One string of Nord Stream 2 remains intact and filled with gas, but Germany refuses to use it due to sanctions and political considerations. Russia has always insisted on being a reliable energy supplier. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in January that Moscow was interested in resuming gas deliveries to the EU, provided that there are buyers. Brussels moved to eliminate energy reliance on Moscow in the aftermath of the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, and increased purchases of more expensive LNG from the US. Despite this, EU nations continue to buy both the piped fuel and LNG from Russia. The FT reported in January that EU officials were considering the option of resuming Russian pipeline gas imports as part of a potential peace agreement in Ukraine, with proponents arguing that this could lower energy prices in Europe and revive the bloc's industrial sector. In a recent interview with The Economist, presumed future German chancellor Friedrich Merz insisted there would be no return to Russian gas 'for the time being' but conspicuously failed to rule out the possibility.
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Putin ally pushing for US, Russia restart of Nord Stream 2, FT reports
Matthias Warnig, a former spy and longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is reportedly lobbying the U.S. to support a potential restart of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the Financial Times reported on March 2, citing undisclosed sources. Warnig, who led Nord Stream 2's parent company on behalf of Kremlin-controlled gas giant Gazprom until 2023, is reportedly trying to establish contact with U.S. President Donald Trump's team through American businessmen. His efforts come amid discussions on ending Russia's war in Ukraine and reestablishing economic ties between Washington and Moscow. The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines in the Baltic Sea were built to supply natural gas from Russia to Europe. The Nord Stream pipelines, fully owned by Russia, were co-financed by five European energy companies. In September 2022, three of the four Nord Stream pipelines were severely damaged in an apparent sabotage attack. Warnig and Nord Stream 2 AG were placed under U.S. sanctions in 2022 by the administration of then-President Joe Biden. Any deal to revive the project would require Washington to lift these sanctions and for Germany to approve the resumption of Russian gas flows to Europe, according to the FT. A U.S. official, speaking anonymously, expressed skepticism over the viability of such an agreement, warning that Berlin's involvement in Nord Stream 2's renewal could "cause huge rifts" with the EU, which maintains sanctions against Russia. Several European officials aware of the backchannel talks "are concerned and have discussed the matter," the FT added. Read also: Two years on, the Nord Stream explosion remains a mystery, deepening European divide We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
