HOUSTON, March 7. /TASS/. The European Commission sees proposals of Gazprom on settlement of anti-trust investigation against the company as significant progress aimed at its conclusion, Vice-President of the European Commission in charge of Energy Union Maros Sefcovic told TASS.
"I think now we have progress. The progress is that Gazprom sent the remedies (proposals -TASS) that, I would say, are one of the last steps before the conclusion of the case," he said.
When asked if the European Commission has already studied the package of proposals from the Russian gas monopoly, Sefcovic said that they "are being studied and considered now."
"Therefore it is difficult to predict how exactly this will conclude," he said.
In the end of last year Deputy CEO of Gazprom Alexander Medvedev visited Brussels several times to discuss the proposal of the company on how to complete the antitrust investigation the European Commission was conducting against Gazprom.
As part of its antitrust investigation, the European Commission is checking the Russian company for possible abuse of the dominant position in the gas markets of the Eastern European states of the European Union. The European Commission also suspects Gazprom of overpricing when selling gas to European consumers.
If the Russian company is found guilty of these violations, the European Commission may impose a one-time fine on it in the amount of up to 10% of the company's turnover. At the same time, earlier both Russian and European sources reported that both sides are currently working to reach a mutually acceptable out-of-court decision, which does not imply penalties.