EU Court Ruling On OPAL Pipeline May Lead To Fall In Gas Prices For Poland - Prime Minster

EU Court Ruling on OPAL Pipeline May Lead to Fall in Gas Prices for Poland - Prime Minster

WARSAW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th September, 2019) Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki expressed a belief on Tuesday that the European top court's ruling that curtailed access of Russia's Gazprom to the OPAL pipeline would reduce gas prices for Poland.

Earlier in the day, the European Union court overruled the European Commission's decision of 2016 that expanded Gazprom's access to OPAL's facilities as violating the energy solidarity principle. The European Commission promised to carefully analyze this decision.

"Bringing this gas pipeline to the rules of competition creates much better conditions for competing with Russian gas and much better conditions for ensuring certain sovereignty, security, but also lower gas prices in Poland in a couple of years when the Baltic Pipe is ready," Morawiecki told reporters.

Morawiecki added that the oil prices had already significantly decreased.

OPAL, which received gas from the Nord Stream pipeline had long been used at less than full capacity due to the limits set by regulators. In October 2016, the European Commission allowed Gazprom to have larger access to OPAL. The Russian company retained its right to use 50 percent of the pipeline's transit capacity. In addition, the commission allowed Gazprom to participate in bids for additional 40 percent of the pipeline's capacity.

In December 2016, the Polish government and state-run PGNiG oil company lodged a complaint with the EU court, stating that the commission's decision went against the principle of gas delivery diversification.