The Federal Network Agency takes over its control on a fiduciary basis
The German federal government intervened and on Friday took control of the three refineries operated by the Russian energy consortium Rosneft in Germany, notably in Schwedt, Karlsruhe and Vohburg. To ensure its functioning, the Berlin executive has ordered that crude oil importer Rosneft Deutschland (RDG) and the RN Refining & Marketing GmbH (RNRM) be fiduciary managed by the Federal Network Agency, the Federal Ministry of Economy announced. The measure is now in effect and will be in effect for the next six months. The affected companies will bear the costs of the operation themselves, emphasized the ministry led by the green Robert Habeck.
The measure is a result of the European Union’s oil embargo against Russia, which will come into effect from January 1, 2023, as a punishment for the invasion of Ukraine. The Federal Ministry of Economy had already emphasized before its intervention that the Russian consortium has no interest in supporting an embargo that directly harms it. Rosneft Deutschland has 12% of the crude oil processing capacity in Germany and its refineries are considered strategic. The decision to transfer management to the Federal Network Agency is intended to secure Germany’s energy supply and the future of the East German refinery in Schwedt, which is threatened with closure without Russian crude.
Ministry sources stressed that there will be a “broad package for the future” for the Schwedt refinery that will provide a “transformative impetus” to the region and support that will enable the supply of oil via alternative routes. Built in times of the extinct GDR, it sits on the border with Poland, northeast of the state of Brandenburg, in one of the most deprived regions of Germany. It is fueled solely by Russian oil which comes through the ‘Druschba’ pipeline, employs 1,200 people and is the economic mainstay of the region, also producing fuel for much of northeastern Germany.
Rosneft’s German subsidiaries, RDG and RNRM, provide Germany with hundreds of millions of euros worth of Russian crude oil every month. Its intervention aims to ensure the operation of the three affected refineries. Service companies such as suppliers, insurers, banks, IT companies and banks, as well as their customers, were no longer willing to cooperate with Rosneft, with the refineries of the Russian consortium or its two subsidiaries in this country, despite the embargo. The Russian crude embargo is a politically controversial measure in East Germany, where it will directly affect the Schwedt region and much of the population sympathizes with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Instead, the Karlsruhe and Vohburg refineries can be supplied with fuel from other countries.
Source: La Verdad
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