Lithuania intends to demand the seizure of Gazprom's European property
Lithuania accused Gazprom of abuse of its monopoly position in the natural gas market and imposed a fine of EUR 42 million, TASS reports.
Vilnius expects to collect the fine using Gazprom’s property in other European countries.
Lithuanian Ministry of Justice has prepared a special action plan for the recovery of the fine and any accrued interest. The plan outlines the actions of various Lithuanian ministries and departments. The accusations of Lithuania relate to the events of 2012, when the Lithuanian company Lietuvos Energija, who sells natural gas supplied from Russia, asked Gazprom to agree to the barter exchange of several batches of gas. Lietuvos Energija found an opportunity to buy gas in Europe at a price that was lower than that of Gazprom. Gazprom did not agree to exchange.
According to the Lithuanian Competition Council, Gazprom violated one of the conditions under which the Russian conglomerate acquired 37 percent stake in the Lithuanian gas company Lietuvos Dujos in 2004. In 2014, Gazprom sold its the Government of Lithuania.