Management of Latvijas Gaze and ownership structure not interested in peace and clarity for Latvian people - Karins

  • 2022-09-02
  • LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - The management and ownership structure of joint-stock gas supply company Latvijas Gaze, which is co-owned by Russia's Gazprom, is not interested in peace and clarity for the Latvian people, Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (New Unity) told Latvian Television this morning.

Commenting on Latvijas Gaze's claims that there might not be enough gas for the upcoming heating season, the politician emphasized that it should be remembered that the name Latvijas Gaze is a misleading one - if it were named after the structure of the owner, it would be Russian Gas.

"The management of the company and the ownership structure are not interested in peace and clarity for the Latvian people. Russia is at war against Ukraine, but Russia is also aggressive in its statements against the Baltic states," said Karins, emphasizing that one should be careful with what Latvijas Gaze says.

On the other hand, joint-stock Conexus Baltic Grid is a state-owned company that stores gas and knows that more gas is currently stored underground for Latvia than is needed by households for the heating season. Based on the law, the government made a decision to reserve a certain amount of gas, which will be enough for the heating season, said Karins.

"There will be enough gas. Currently, Latvijas Gaze is a public trader - it has an obligation to supply households. As long as they fulfill this obligation, the gas that is underground will go to households. If they refuse, they are unable or hardly able to fulfill this obligation, then this duty will be provided by the state company Latvenergo in cooperation with Conexus," explained the Prime Minister.

The largest shareholders of Latvijas Gaze are Gazprom (34 percent), Marguerite Gas II.S.a.r.l. (28.97 percent), Uniper Ruhrgas International GmbH (18.26 percent) and Itera Latvija (16 percent).

The chairman of Latvijas Gaze is former Latvian Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis.