Gazprom has agreed to sell its 34% share in Latvia’s natural gas distributor Latvijas Gaze in its first gesture of compliance with the European Union’s Third Energy Package directive which bans energy companies from combining their generation and sale operations with ownership of transmission networks.
The Latvian company will consequently be divided into two subsidiaries, one which will concentrate on the distribution of gas and the other on its storage and transportation.
According to Russian analysts, Gazprom has decided not to fight the requirements of the Third Energy Package in Latvia after its unsuccessful 2012 lawsuit to prevent Lithuania’s Lietuvos Dujos being sold and split up in a similar fashion. The Russian company does not have the stomach for another costly legal battle and has also been assured that it will be able to continue to sell its gas to the Baltic country at realistic prices, irrespective of who controls the distribution network.
Gazprom agrees to sell off Latvjias Gaze to comply with EU restrictions
Source: rbth