EU Commission allows nationalization of Uniper and Gazprom Germania

Enlarge image

Uniper in Düsseldorf: EU-approved takeover

Photo: INA FASSBENDER / AFP

The EU Commission has approved the takeover of the energy companies Uniper and Sefe (formerly Gazprom Germania) by the German government.

Both companies got into difficulties as a result of the ongoing European energy crisis and in particular because of the cessation of Russian gas deliveries and the sharp rise in gas prices, the Brussels authorities justified the vote.

The respective nationalization would also give “no reason for competition law concerns”.

Uniper got most of its gas from Russia and now has to supply its customers with much more expensive substitutes.

Billions of dollars in government aid were not enough.

The federal government finally decided to nationalize Uniper.

After the green light for this from Brussels, the shareholders can now vote on the rescue plan at an extraordinary general meeting on Monday as planned.

Two ministries "not active in the same markets"

Gazprom Germania was a subsidiary of the Russian Gazprom Group.

The federal government put the company under trusteeship of the Federal Network Agency in April.

The name was then changed to Securing Energy for Europe (Sefe).

In November, the Federal Ministry of Economics announced the nationalization in order to prevent the imminent insolvency of Sefe.

In both cases, the federal government had argued that the companies were of central importance for the energy supply in Germany.

In the future, the Federal Ministry of Finance will be responsible for Uniper and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs for Sefe.

The EU Commission also justified its approval of the nationalization with the fact that the respective ministries "are not currently active in the same markets or in vertically linked markets" and therefore no antitrust problems would arise.

mamk/AFP