EU set to charge Gazprom in antitrust case

European regulators will formally charge Russia’s state-run energy giant Gazprom with anti-competitive practices, say sources in Brussels.

EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager is expected to issue a statement of objections on Wednesday (April 22), accusing the company of unfair practices in eastern and central European countries, including Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

It’s a move that will increase tensions between Europe and Moscow, says Marat Terterov, chair of the Brussels Energy Club.

“There is a strong view inside Russia, in particular inside the Russian energy establishment – Gazprom and the energy ministry – that this is highly politically motivated case,” he told euronews. “I am not so convinced. I would say to you that the jury is still out whether this a political case or whether this is really the European institutions trying to enforce the rule of law.”

When the investigation began almost three years ago, Gazprom was suspected of