Siemens warns that it will not service illegally imported turbines in Crimea
The German company Siemens AG has stated that it will not service its turbines that have been illegally imported from Russia to the annexed Crimea, if this information is confirmed.
According to the company’s statement, Siemens has taken all possible legal measures to prevent such an import of the company's products into the Crimea, which is under sanctions, and will take appropriate operative measures to prevent illegal use of the equipment; namely, it will not provide any deliveries or services for installation, commissioning support, or warranty service.
The company noted that it has warned all of its customers many times that it was abiding by export restrictions, and confirmed that if the redirection of recently purchased turbines from Russia to the Crimea truly occurred, it would be an obvious breach of contractual arrangements.
Now, the company is verifying the report on the delivery of its turbines to the Crimea, and has set up a working group to investigate the circumstances. This group is "already working hard" to establish the facts, the report said.
On July 5, Reuters reported, citing sources, that Russia had sent gas turbines made by the German conglomerate Siemens to the annexed Crimea, despite the fact that the EU banned European companies from supplying energy technologies to the peninsula.
The turbines were produced in a joint venture with the Russian company Silovye Mashiny, by the Siemens Gas Turbine Technology Plant. In March, a German company said that the equipment was delivered to Taman; however, according to Reuters’ sources, two of the four turbines appeared in Sevastopol, where they will be installed at a local power plant.
Vedomosti reported as early as 2015 that Russia planned to install Siemens equipment in the power plants being built in the Crimea.
In April, the head of the Russian Energy Ministry, Alexander Novak, admitted that the completion of the construction of a thermal power station (TPS) in the annexed area of Sevastopol and Simferopol was delayed because of Western sanctions.