In the dispute over the planned liquefied gas terminal on Rügen, the company Deutsche ReGas sees itself relieved by an expert opinion on the allegations made by the municipality of Binz. The municipality had accused the company, which was only founded in 2022, of non-transparent financing of the million-euro project – it is considered a key project for the energy supply in the coming winter, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) had made it a top priority and met the two company founders several times, including in one Tax consultant office in Potsdam. The Baltic Sea resort of Binz has been fighting against the operators and the terminal for weeks, fearing the consequences for tourism and the environment.
A total of 200 million euros are to be invested in the two floating liquid gas terminals. The municipality of Binz, represented by a lawyer, raised questions about the origin of the funds and the investors, both here and at a first terminal in Lubmin. The terminal in Lubmin is to be relocated to Mukran and together with a second regasification ship to be chartered by the federal government, two large LNG terminals would be built here within sight of the Baltic Sea beaches.
The company Deutsche ReGas commissioned the law firm Hengeler Mueller, one of the leading commercial law firms, with an audit because of the allegations, the result is now available. “The reviewed shareholder and financing structures of Deutsche ReGas have proven to be legally compliant and transparent,” the company stated. None of the investors in Deutsche ReGas are subject to sanctions. The financing that has been checked so far would take the form of “comprehensible capital increases against cash contributions of around EUR 94 million”. It also has “no contribution of funds or contributions in kind or other structural measures” that are related to a fund in the Cayman Islands.
The mayor is not surprised
The current managing director of Deutsche ReGas used to look after this, this was the main suspicion of the Binz municipality. Accordingly, no funds flowed directly or indirectly from this to Deutsche ReGas. The Federal Ministry of Economics recently emphasized that the origin of the funds must be transparently disclosed before a final agreement is reached between the federal government and ReGas on the Mukran site on the island of Rügen. Although a declaration of intent was signed on June 21, it was “only a key point paper on the sub-charter agreement that is still to be negotiated in detail,” emphasized the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
The mayor of Binz, Karsten Schneider, said that the result did not surprise him “unfortunately, because the assessment comes precisely from the law firm that has been advising Deutsche ReGas on financing the company for a long time”. An objective and independent assessment was therefore not at all to be expected. “The process is nothing more than a farce.” Deutsche ReGas is taking legal action against Binz’s public allegations. Delays in the project cannot be ruled out – also because of the threat of lawsuits, especially since there are still 50 kilometers of pipeline to be laid to the mainland to Lubmin through the Baltic Sea off Rügen.
The company emphasized that demand was already high – in coordination with the Federal Network Agency, an annual regasification capacity of four billion cubic meters of natural gas for periods of at least ten years had been put out to tender and fully booked. George Ismar