An American investor with extensive experience in Russia has requested approval from the US government to participate in the potential auction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, currently under Swiss bankruptcy proceedings. The auction could take place in January 2025, reported WSJ.
The 765-mile Nord Stream 2 pipeline, once a key asset of Russia's petro economy, connected its gas fields to Europe but never became operational. Completed before Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, it is owned by Gazprom's Swiss subsidiary, which filed for bankruptcy shortly after the invasion. Subsea explosions in September 2022 damaged one trunk, leaving the other intact but unused.
Stephen P. Lynch spent two decades conducting business in Moscow, aims to acquire the pipeline linking Russia to Germany. He has argued to US officials and lawmakers that American ownership of the pipeline could serve as a strategic tool in peace negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine and advance long-term US. interests.
Right now, Lynch lives in Miami and was a large contributor to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. He has told people, according to WSJ, 'he wants to be the richest guy you’ve never heard of.'
In February, Lynch applied for a license from the US Treasury to negotiate the pipeline's purchase with sanctioned entities. According to a letter from his attorneys at WilmerHale, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, the Swiss bankruptcy process has a strict deadline to restructure debts by January 2025 or proceed with liquidation.
“The bottom line is this: This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for American and European control over European energy supply for the rest of the fossil-fuel era,” Lynch stated in an rare interview.
Lee Wolosky, former advisor to President Biden and a partner at Jenner & Block, described Lynch's proposal as aligned with US strategic interests. “The Biden administration and a future Trump administration should both see the value in this,” Wolosky said, citing Lynch's expertise in navigating Russian markets.
US senators, Treasury Department officials, and State Department representatives have reportedly been briefed on Lynch’s plans, according to WSJ.
Previously, reports indicated that since March of this year, Russia has supplied over 1 million barrels (56,000 tons) of oil to North Korea, according to analysis of satellite imagery by the British research organization Open Source Centre.
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