Gaz-System puts gas critical infrastructure management in order

In mid-March this year. Gaz-System entered into a conditional agreement with Orlen for the acquisition of all shares in the share capital of Gas Storage Poland. The finalisation of the transaction is conditional on UOKiK’s approval of the concentration in this area. Małgorzata Banasik, managing partner at BWW law firm, talks about the substance of this move in the gas market.

The company Gaz-System acts as the operator of the national transmission system, the operator of the Polish section of the Yamal pipeline and the operator of the LNG Terminal. Although Orlen’s sale of its shares in the share capital of Gas Storage Poland follows a decision by the President of UOKiK concerning the concentration of Orlen and PGNiG, the effects of the transaction will not be limited to meeting the condition imposed by UOKiK.

The concentration of tasks related to the operation of the transmission system, the LNG Terminal and natural gas storage in operational terms within a single capital group provides a guarantee of taking optimal business decisions to ensure the country’s energy security.

It also strengthens oversight of the strategic gas infrastructure in Poland. At the same time, it will improve cooperation between the transmission system operator and the storage system operator. It will allow better planning of investments at the interface between these areas.