Germany suddenly blocks Nord Stream 2 Certification Process

The standoff concerns an insistence from the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) that the operator of the pipeline must only be registered as a German entity, while the Nord Stream 2 AG company is based in Switzerland.

It has opted to establish a subsidiary in Germany to oversee the part of the pipeline that goes through the country, but the regulator suddenly says that most assets should be transferred to that German firm?

The certification will resume only after this transfer is completed and the German subsidiary files a new application, BNetzA said. It will then be studied during the remaining part of the four-month-long approval period.

Nord Stream 2 AG applied for certification of the pipeline this June, but the German regulator deemed that it had received all the required papers only in early September?

That’s when the four-month certification process started, meaning that the draft decision might not be published by BNetzA before January 2022.

The approval process was further complicated after Poland and Ukraine – both strongly opposed to the project – were given the right to participate in it. However, they can only issue their judgement on the project, and lack veto powers to block it.

The construction of the underwater pipeline, which was carried out despite strong opposition from the US regime, was completed in September, and it was later filled with gas.

Russia’s energy giant Gazprom said earlier this month that deliveries to customers in Germany and elsewhere in the EU may start as soon as it’s given the green light by BNetzA.

Germany and Europe may be short on gas this winter in that case. Must not be a concern for these certification bureaucrats. Maybe they take their orders from the CIA, who knows?

Meanwhile, as the story reveals, gas prices go up, and Russia is subject to those markets as well.

Construction and certification of Nord Stream first pipeline took less than 3 years, and it has already been operating well for over 10 years providing secure supply to Russia’s Central European partners.

Nord Stream 2 has been under construction for over 5 years, during this period being hampered by USA and now finally filled with gas, clearly being prevented from operating due to political motivations.