Germany Freezes Certification Of Nord Stream 2 Gas Project

German authorities have suspended the certification procedure for the Nord Stream 2 gas project, marking another setback for the controversial underwater pipeline designed to bring Russian gas to Germany and Europe, Robin Powell reported for Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa).

Photo Insert: Work in progress on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline

Although the construction of Nord Stream 2 has been completed and it has been filled with gas, the actual delivery of the gas depends on Nord Stream receiving the correct approvals from regulators.

The lack of approval so far, with winter approaching and gas demand set to rise, is a source of increasing tension between Moscow and Berlin.

"Following a thorough examination of the documentation, the Federal Network Agency concluded that it would only be possible to certify an operator of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline if that operator was organized in a legal form under German law," the agency said in a Tuesday statement.

The agency explained that a subsidiary set up to govern the German part of the pipeline did not fulfill the conditions to be an independent transmission operator. "The subsidiary must then fulfill the requirements of an independent transmission operator as set out in the German Energy Industry Act," it said.

Until "the main assets and human resources have been transferred to the subsidiary" and this step has been verified, the certification procedure would be suspended, the agency said.

The consortium behind the pipeline, whose majority shareholder is Russian energy giant Gazprom, said on Tuesday it was taking steps to ensure that it complies with German regulations. The subsidiary based in Germany would "ensure compliance with applicable rules and regulations," said Nord Stream AG, according to state news agency TASS.

Recently, Green Party leader Annalena Baerbock - whose party is currently in negotiations to form the next German government - argued that Nord Stream 2 should not be granted an operating license for the time being.

In an interview with the newspapers of the Funke Mediengruppe, she accused Russia of a "poker game" in view of rising energy prices across Europe. "We must not allow ourselves to be blackmailed," she said.

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