MOSCOW, January 26. /TASS/. Nord Stream 2 AG, operator of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, has established a German subsidiary, Gas for Europe GmbH, for the German section of the pipeline, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

Gas for Europe GmbH will become the operator of this section as an independent transport system operator in accordance with German law.

"Nord Stream 2 AG has founded a German subsidiary Gas for Europe GmbH. The new company is to become the owner and operator of the 54-kilometre section of the Nord Stream 2 Pipeline located in the German territorial waters and the landfall facility in Lubmin, as an independent transmission operator in accordance with the German Energy Industry Act (EnWG)," according to the statement.

The Nord Stream 2 saga

The construction of Nord Stream 2 was fully completed on September 10, 2021. The works were initially planned to be completed by the end of 2019, though the construction was postponed due to US sanctions. The Nord Stream 2 project envisages the construction of two pipelines with a total capacity of 55 bln cubic meters per year from the coast of Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany.

To start pumping gas, Nord Stream 2’s operator has to obtain the green light from the German regulator. On November 16, the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) suspended the procedure to certify Nord Stream 2 AG, which is based in Zug (Switzerland), as an independent transmission operator due to organizational and legal issues. The regulator noted that the certification procedure would remain suspended until the operator’s main assets and human resources were transferred to the ownership of its German subsidiary.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on December 29 that Russia and its partners had fulfilled their objective of creating Nord Stream 2, adding that it is for Europeans to decide on it now. The Russian leader noted that the pipeline was ready for operation. Once Moscow’s partners in Europe come to a decision on it, then additional volumes of Russian gas will be pumped into the pipeline, Putin said. He also was confident that opening Nord Stream 2’s operation would enable a decline in gas prices in Europe. Given the new green policy course, Germany now needs more gas because the country is now gradually abandoning the use of coal and nuclear energy.