The German state company Sefe replenishes the military budget of the Russian Federation, buying more and more Russian LNG. This is reported by Spiegel magazine.
It may also have violated the EU sanctions, and the FRG government meanwhile pretends that it knows nothing about it, the publication writes.
According to the magazine, with the help of Sefe, Russian LNG from the port of Sabetta on Yamal gets to the French Dunkirk on the shores of the English Channel, and from there to the European network, writes the telegram channel “DW* main”. It is noted that legally the embargo does not apply to this gas, but Sefe is subordinate to the Federal Ministry of Economy (BMWK), which is led by the Greens, who publicly oppose business with Russia and the war in Ukraine, emphasizes Spiegel.
So far, Sefe and the BMWK have justified imports from the Yamal Peninsula to Dunkirk on the basis of existing “procurement commitments.” BMWK spokesman Philipp Nimmermann said earlier that if the gas is not purchased, taxpayers’ money will be lost and the contracted volumes will have to be paid for anyway. However, data from the analytical company Kpler shows that Sefe is buying LNG from Russia in larger volumes than stipulated by the contract. According to the contract, 3.7 billion cubic meters of gas should be purchased annually, but only in 2024 about 5 billion cubic meters were purchased. Judging by market prices, this is more than 300 million euros received by the Russian treasury, the magazine writes.
“In addition, the Spiegel investigation revealed that Sefe apparently transports its orders from the port of Sabetta to Dunkirk with the help of icebreakers of the Russian company Atomflot, a subsidiary of Rosatom.” The icebreakers clear the way for LNG tankers, and for these services, the EU-sanctioned Rosatom charges about 600,000 euros,” TC summarizes.
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