A Russian court said on Wednesday Czech firm Net4Gas (N4G) would have to pay a fine of around 112.96 million euros ($122.7 million) unless it drops a lawsuit against energy major Gazprom (GAZP.MM) over missed payments, TASS news agency reported.
Last April, Net4Gas, a natural gas transmission system operator, said it would start arbitration proceedings against an unnamed Russian oil major, after a government minister said in January that the Czech company had not received payments from Gazprom.
Russian natural gas supplies to Europe have dwindled to post-Soviet lows after Russia sent its troops into Ukraine in 2022 and as Western governments ratchet up sanctions against Moscow.
The St Petersburg and Leningrad Region Arbitration Court on Wednesday barred Czech natural gas transmission system operator Net4Gas from continued arbitration against Gazprom in the Czech Republic, court documents showed.
"N4G is considering the possibility of an appeal, but, first and foremost, is of the view that the decision of the Russian court should not be recognised or enforced in any relevant jurisdiction outside of Russia," the company said in a statement.
In November, the same court said Poland's Europol Gaz will have to pay a fine of around $1.57 billion if it continues to pursue a 6 billion zloty ($1.51 billion) lawsuit against Gazprom in Sweden.
Until the Nord Stream pipeline stopped shipping gas to western Europe from Russia in 2022, Gazprom paid N4G and other companies fees for use of infrastructure.
Gazprom has lodged similar claims with the court against German's Uniper Global Commodities SE and Metha-Methanhandel GmbH, Dutch Gasunie Transport Service, Ukraine's Naftogas and Poland's Orlen.
Last year, Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) and Commerzbank (CBKG.DE) won an injunction in London to stop a subsidiary of Gazprom from suing them in Russia over an aborted gas project.
($1 = 0.9204 euros)
($1 = 3.9641 zlotys)
