German authorities suspend certification for Nord Stream 2

Berlin (dpa) – Germany’s Federal Network Agency has suspended the certification procedure for the controversial Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline designed to bring Russian gas to Germany and Europe.

Although the construction of the pipeline has been completed and it has been filled with gas, the 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 Bundesnetzagentur 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 German agency said in a Tuesday statement.

The agency explained that a subsidiary set up to govern the German part of the pipeline did not fulfil the conditions to be a “independent transmission operator.”

“The subsidiary must then fulfil 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 Federal Network Agency approval is not the last step however – after it has examined the certification, it still needs to send a report to the European Commission for an opinion as per EU legislation.

Four months remain for this to happen, the agency said.

The construction phase of Nord Stream 2 was dogged by accusations – notably from Washington, but also from countries in Eastern Europe – that it would mean letting Russia have too much power in the European gas market.

The pipeline was completed in September, but the debate has moved on to whether it should be granted a licence.

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 licence 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. “We must not allow ourselves to be blackmailed,” she said.