Eesti Gaas Made Witness in EU Gazprom Case
Eesti Gaas has been called up by the European Commission as a witness in an anti-trust investigation of Russia's Gazprom, reported Eesti Päevaleht.
The Kremlin-controlled natural gas provider is suspected of abusing its power in eight EU member countries where it is the dominant supplier - the Baltic states, Poland, Czech, Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria. In five of those countries, including the Baltics, Gazprom has a de facto monopoly.
The commission is concerned that Gazprom has hindered competition and imposed unfair prices in the European Union.
The Russian energy supplier has a 37.03 percent stake in Estonia's gas monopoly - Eesti Gaas. A board member of Eesti Gaas, Raul Kotov, said that if European competition officials require Gazprom to equalize prices in EU markets, prices would rise in Estonia.