The administrative court of Leipzig has rejected the appeal of the Russian oil giant Rosneft against the German state, which had placed under supervision its activities in Germany last September. This decision was taken against the backdrop of the energy dispute between Berlin and Moscow. Rosneft’s German subsidiaries account for 12% of the country’s oil refining capacity. The German government had taken control of the PCK refinery in Schwedt, which supplied the entire Berlin region exclusively with Russian oil. This decision was taken to ensure “security of supply” for Germany, while Berlin had decided to end Russian oil imports on 1 January 2023.
Rosneft challenges the decision
Rosneft had challenged this decision, arguing that this was “not an appropriate way”. The oil giant had even offered to supply its German refineries with oil from suppliers other than Russia. The German government had argued that Rosneft was a Russian state-owned company “used as the armed wing” of Moscow, and that it would never have invested to replace Russian oil, thus justifying the trusteeship. This argument was shared by the court in Leipzig, which indicated that Russia exercises state domination over Rosneft.
The Schwedt refinery is sourcing elsewhere
As early as January, the Schwedt refinery stopped importing Russian oil, supplying itself via a pipeline linked to the port of Rostock, which provides 60% of its needs. Kazakhstan has to make up part of the remaining capacity by sending its oil through the Druzhba pipeline. A delivery agreement was recently reached with Germany, and Astana began shipments at the end of February, after several postponements due in part to the need for Russian authorization to use the pipeline. A total of 300,000 tons of Kazakh oil should be delivered in 2023, out of a total capacity of 12 million tons per year for the refinery.
A justified decision for the supply of Germany
The decision to put the German subsidiaries of Rosneft under supervision was justified by the German government to ensure the country’s energy supply, and to end Russian oil imports on January 1, 2023. This decision was supported by the Administrative Court of Leipzig, which ruled that the German government had acted in accordance with the law. This decision is therefore a victory for Germany, which wants to diversify its energy supply sources and reduce its dependence on Russia.
