Gazprom no longer owns the Akademik Chersky pipe-laying vessel, which was supposed to complete the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The ship belongs to an unknown new owner.
The only pipelayer in the country with a dynamic positioning system on board “Akademik Chersky” met all the strict EU rules on the construction of pipelines at sea.
The ship was on the balance sheet of Gazprom Fleet, but in June the Samara Heat and Power Property Fund (STIF), a member of the Gazprom group, became its owner. STIF and its owners are no longer in the last list of affiliates dated June 30 of this year.
According to RBC, the gas company probably used the right not to disclose some of the data due to the sanctions risks. Thus, Gazprom cannot fall under US sanctions, even if they are toughened, as a ship owner.
The latest version of the not yet pleasant US sanctions law states that only owners of ships used for work in the Baltic Sea, as well as insurance and repair companies providing them with their services, can fall under restrictive measures.