Major bankruptcy

Court now threatens Nord Stream 2 pipeline

The highly indebted operator of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has surprisingly been granted a further extension to reach an agreement with creditors in order to avert bankruptcy.

Originally, the court in the Swiss canton of Zug had announced a decision by January 10. The new deadline is now May 9, as the court announced.

All small creditors must be satisfied "in full" by then and proof of payment must be submitted. "If this deadline is not met, Nord Stream 2 AG will be declared bankrupt without a grace period being set," the cantonal court announced. In Germany, this corresponds to insolvency proceedings.

Pipeline never in operation
Nord Stream 2 AG is owned by the Russian Gazprom Group. It was intended to supply Russian gas through the Baltic Sea to Germany. The pipeline, which cost almost 10 billion euros and was 1200 kilometers long with two strings, was completed but never put into operation. The controversial gas deal was put on hold following Russia's attack on Ukraine in February 2022. One of the two pipe strings was destroyed in an attack at the beginning of September 2022, as were the two strings of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline that had already been put into operation.

The company Transliq, as administrator, submitted a debt restructuring agreement to creditors in November. However, the necessary agreement with the creditors has not yet been reached. In the case of a composition agreement and bankruptcy, creditors must waive part of their claims. However, a composition agreement is legally more advantageous for companies and creditors than bankruptcy.