Rosukrenergo is suing the Hungarian trader Emfesz, who had previously supplied gas

The Swiss trader Rosukrenergo AG, controlled by Gazprom, filed a lawsuit against the Hungarian trader Emfesz with a request to recover over $ 500 million for non-payment of gas contracts of 2004-2009.

According to the newspaper Kommersant on Tuesday, the Hungarian company recently put up complaints about Rosukrenergo for $ 1.7 billion. Experts believe that mutual claims indicate that the parties will soon come to a settlement agreement.

As stated in the Rosukrenergo claim, "the defendant did not pay the amount due to the plaintiff for gas supply and did not sign the acts of the gas acceptance" in the amount of more than $ 500 million. This amount includes interest for the use of commodity loan (gas) in 2005-2007; The cost of 2008 set in September-December and January-April 2009 gas, as well as penalties and fines.

This claim is a response to the statement of Emfesz top managers Tamasha Gazda and Zoltan Epereshi on October 14, in which Rosukrenergo requires compensating $ 1.78 billion. In fact, Emfesz demanded that Rosukrenergo cover its own expenses associated with the purchase and sale of gas, since the Hungarian trader could not pay all the bills on his own, the newspaper writes.

According to the laws of Sweden, the defendant must agree with the consideration of the case under the jurisdiction of the Stockholm arbitration. Otherwise, this lawsuit will be sent to the court of another international jurisdiction.

“The most obscure in this story is that the Gazprom suits. The owner of Emfesz is the unknown Swiss Rosgaz, whose shareholders are not visible,” says Maxim Shein from Brokerkreditservis.

In May, newspapers wrote that the EMFESZ gas trader created in 2003, which controls the quarter of the Hungarian market, no longer belongs to the former Gazprom partner Dmitry Firtash. Since April 2009, its only owner is the Swiss Rosgas AG.

After the Russian -Ukrainian gas war, Gazprom stopped supplying Rosukrenergo gas, and that EMFESZ, after which a new supplier was found - Rosgas.

Emfesz has concluded export contracts with Rosukrenergo until 2015, and Hungarians could demand a fine for disruption of deliveries through European courts. On the other hand, Emfesz with its distribution network in Hungary is an attractive asset, and Gazprom would like to get a share in Emfesz.