MOSCOW, September 3. /TASS/. The District Court of The Hague ruled to seize Gazprom's shares in Wintershall Noordzee, a joint venture with Wintershall Dea in the North Sea.

According to the court files, the relevant ruling was issued in May. Gazprom had previously planned to sell this stake.

The shares have been seized following a lawsuit by the Ukrainian company Slavutich-Invest, which previously owned land plots in Melitopol. Gazprom, in turn, demands that this arrest be lifted.

In March, Gazprom International Limited began a competitive procedure for the sale of assets in the North Sea. The starting price of the assets is 344 million euros.

In particular, Gazprom plans to sell 50% in Wintershall Noordzee B.V., the joint venture with Wintershall Dea Nederland Asset Holding B.V., and 100% in the subsidiary Gazprom International UK Limited, which holds a stake in the consortium for the development of the Sillimanite field.

The transaction also includes the sale of 100% of the shares of Gazprom UK Limited, which owns Gazprom UK Resources, the holder of a stake in the consortium for the development of the Wingate field.

Gazprom International Limited became a shareholder of Wintershall Noordzee in 2015 as part of an asset swap deal between Gazprom and Wintershall Holding GmbH (now Wintershall Dea). Under the terms of the agreement, the company received 50% in Wintershall Noordzee. In 2023, production by Wintershall Noordzee amounted to more than 5,000 barrels per day of oil equivalent, and is expected to grow due to individual development projects.