On 22
April, 2015 the European Commission placed on its official website a press
release informing that it had approved a Statement of
Objections within the on-going antitrust
investigation of OAO Gazprom’s activities in the countries of the
European Union (EU).
OAO
Gazprom considers the objections put forward by the European Commission to be
unfounded. It should be noted that the Statement of
Objections is only one of the stages within the on-going antitrust investigation
and does not amount to finding Gazprom guilty of violating any provision of EU
law.
OAO
Gazprom strictly adheres to all the norms of international law and national
legislation in the countries where the Gazprom Group conducts business. The
business practices of the Gazprom Group in the EU market, including the
principles of gas pricing, are in full conformity with the standards observed by
other producers and exporters of natural gas.
We
expect that within the framework of the on-going
antitrust investigation our company’s rights and legitimate interests,
rooted both in EU legislation and international law, will be taken into
consideration. We also expect that it will be duly noted that OAO Gazprom was
established beyond the jurisdiction of the EU, and that it is empowered by the
laws of the Russian Federation with special socially-significant functions and
has the status of a strategic government-controlled business
entity.
OAO
Gazprom expects the resolution of this situation in the framework of agreement,
previously reached between the Government of the Russian Fed
eration and the European Commission to find an acceptable solution to
the antitrust investigation on the intergovernmental level.