Germany Officials announced Friday that country is taking control of three Russian-owned refineries in the country to maintain energy security before a Russian oil embargo takes effect next year.
Rosneft Deutschland GmbH and RN Refining & Marketing GmbH, two subsidiaries of Russian oil giant Rosneft, will be administered by Germany's Federal Network Agency, according to a statement from the Economy Ministry.
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As a result, the agency will also have control in the refineries PCK Schwedt, MiRo, and Bayernoil, which are located in Germany's east and south.
“This is a far-reaching energy policy decision to protect our country,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said. “We’ve long known that Russia isn’t a reliable supplier of energy anymore.”
“With today’s decision, we’re ensuring that Germany is supplied with oil in the medium- and long-term as well,” Scholz said. “That is particularly true for the Schwedt refinery.”
The facility provides petroleum products to much of northeastern Germany, including Berlin.
Rosneft accounts for about 12% of Germany’s oil refining capacity, importing oil worth several hundred million euros every month, the ministry said.
It said the move would help ensure continued energy supplies and was initially due to last for six months.
Despite a potential EU embargo that takes effect on January 1, 2023, Rosneft previously stated that it has no intention of stopping oil imports via the Druzhba pipeline, which runs from Russia through Ukraine to refineries in central Europe.
Scholz stated that a one-billion-euro aid plan would secure jobs for approximately 1,200 people currently employed at the PCK refinery in Schwedt and assist with its long-term transformation as part of the transition to a green economy.
Economy Minister Robert Habeck said the refinery would receive oil in the future via a pipeline from the port city of Rostock and via neighboring Poland, which had refused to supply supplies as long as Rosneft could profit from them.
