MOSCOW, November 17. /TASS/. An increase in the supply of Russian gas to Europe via the existing routes depends on direct agreements between suppliers and consumers, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

"It depends on additional requests, it depends on Gazprom’s readiness to fulfill these requests, it is a matter of direct contacts between gas consumers and gas suppliers, this is a purely commercial issue," the Kremlin official said, when asked if the delay with certification of the operator of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline means that Russia may increase supplies to stabilize the European gas market.

When asked if Gazprom could take heed of Kremlin’s opinion in this regard Peskov reiterated that this is "a purely commercial project."

"Gazprom is a commercial company, a very powerful and global one, there are certain contracts, those contracts Gazprom is fulfilling to the full," he said. The Kremlin official reiterated that the reliability of Gazprom is proved each day.

"Going forward, it is the subject of commercial talks," he concluded.

Nord Stream project

On Tuesday, the Federal Network Agency of Germany announced that it had temporarily suspended the certification of Nord Stream 2 AG as an independent operator of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The regulator noted that the certification could be conducted only if the company has a legal form in compliance with German law.

In other words, the regulator demands that Nord Stream 2 AG should transfer its main capital, which concerns the German segment of the pipeline to the ownership of its German subsidiary. Only after that can certification be completed. The regulator will be able to resume its examination "in the remainder of the four-month period set out in law," according to the statement. Previously January 8, 2022, was mentioned as the deadline. After that the German regulator should submit its draft conclusion to the European Commission for approval.

Currently, gas from Russia to Europe is supplied, in particular, through the Nord Stream pipeline, through Ukraine, and through the Yamal-Europe pipeline.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin repeatedly said that Russia had never refused foreign partners in their requests for natural gas supplies above the existing contracts. He also stressed that Russia is ready to preserve gas transit through Ukraine and even increase supplies, but it is necessary to understand the volume of purchases and conclude appropriate agreements. In late October, Putin instructed Gazprom to increase supplies to the company's storage facilities in Europe after refilling underground storage facilities in Russia.