After the experiences of the last months with Russian gas flows, capacity bookings and all the discussions around the completion and certification of Nord Stream 2, nothing should come as a surprise anymore. But November was again a remarkable month regarding these topics and the impact on prices. But do not be afraid – the author of this publication will not provide an analysis of similar length to that in the last edition. It is more of a follow-up focusing on Russian gas flows, storage facilities used by Gazprom, and Nord Stream 2. The certification procedure is a good starting point.
Suspension of the certification procedure
On November 16, BNetzA announced the suspension of the certification procedure. It stated that a certification of Nord Stream 2, a stock cooperation under Swiss law, could not comply with the German energy law. Only a company with a German legal form is eligible to be certified as an Independent System Operator. This is stipulated somewhat indirectly in the German Energy Act. I will not bother you, dear readers with the legal details. Nord Stream 2 allegedly accepted this assessment only after some lengthy discussions with the regulator and agreed in November to establish a legal entity as an affiliate in Germany. The new company will become the owner of the Nord Stream 2 part in German territorial waters and will become the operator of this section. Therefore, the company must be endowed with the necessary personnel, capabilities and means. It should be possible to buy services from other network operators. The TSOs OPAL Gastransport and NEL Gastransport are, for example, very lean organisations and rely on services bought from Gascade. But service purchases may become challenging if the US sanctions are tightened, as discussed in Congress (ener|gate Gasmarkt 11/21).