Germany intends to nationalize its section of Nord Stream 2

The German Ministry of Economy is considering the possibility of nationalizing part of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which is located on the territory of the country.

After that, the German section of the pipeline will be cut off from the rest of it and subsequently it can be connected to a floating LNG terminal. This section is already included in the German gas transmission system, and it will be possible to supply gas to the south of the country through it.

At the same time, experts note a number of difficulties that Germany may encounter in the process of nationalizing part of Nord Stream 2. Firstly, it will be necessary to re-environmentally coordinate the work in the Natura 2000 protected natural area. An additional complication is the difficult status of the owner of the highway – the Swiss Nord Stream 2 AG.

Also, the seizure of an asset can lead to a retaliatory strike from Russia, for example, in the form of the expropriation of German companies in Russia.

Given this perspective, the ministry is exploring the possibility of building a gas pipeline parallel to the Nord Stream 2 route. This would not eliminate the risk of retaliatory actions from the Russian Federation, but would reduce their volume.