The Moscow Arbitration Court refused to satisfy the claim against Rostekh's structures (OJSC and Tekhnopromexport LLC) about the return of gas turbines delivered, according to the German company, to the Crimea, bypassing the EU sanctions.
As reported by TASS, the court also denied Technopromexport a counterclaim against Siemens. "In the satisfaction of the claim to refuse, in the settlement of the counterclaim to refuse," - said in a court ruling. The judge who read the document reminded that the parties can appeal this decision.
On the same day, December 14, Deputy Energy Minister of Russia Andrei Tcherezov said that the first two Siemens turbines have already been installed at the Sevastopol and Simferopol TPPs, which are built on the federal target program for the development of the Crimea and Sevastopol until 2020. "Measures for alignment are taking place - these are activities that are done before launch," the deputy minister said. He noted that the installation of two more turbines will be completed in December this year, the main blocks are already standing.
Commissioning of the first blocks of TPP at 235 MW is planned for May 2018. Fully two TPPs in the Crimea should be put into operation in June 2018. This will completely cover the needs of the peninsula in electricity.
Dispute about turbines
Two gas thermal power plants with a capacity of 470 MW each - in Sevastopol and Simferopol - builds in Crimea the incoming "Tekhnopromexport" (part of the state corporation Rostekh). It was planned to install turbines made using Siemens technology on the Crimean TPPs. Negotiations of Siemens Gas Turbine Technology LLC and Technopromexport OJSC (part of Rostezh) on the delivery of gas turbine units to the Crimea were planned to be completed by November 30, 2014. But at the end of the year, EU sanctions have come into force, banning the supply or transfer of basic equipment and technologies to infrastructure facilities related to the transport, telecommunications and energy industries located in the Crimea and Sevastopol.
On March 10, 2015, Tekhnopromexport OJSC and Siemens Gas Turbine Technology LLC (STGT) signed another contract - the delivery of turbines for substations in the territory of the Taman Peninsula in the Krasnodar Territory.
In court, Siemens is trying to prove that neither the German concern nor Siemens Technologies of Gas Turbines had any idea that the energy projects in the Crimea are related to the construction of substations in the Kuban. And it indicates the condition of the contract, which prohibits the use of gas turbine plants anywhere other than the territory of the Krasnodar Territory.
Rosteh later said that he had found another supplier of turbines, which he bought in the secondary market. On October 16, 2015, JSC "Foreign Economic Association" Technopromexport "concluded a contract with OOO" Foreign Economic Association "Technopromexport" for the amount of € 129.18 million for the supply of four gas turbine units, corresponding to the description purchased by Siemens Technologies of gas turbines.
As a result of the investigation, Siemens said that all four turbines delivered to the Crimea turned out to be its production.
The official position of the Russian authorities is that the resale of turbines in the domestic Russian market is legal, and the new owner of the turbines is not bound by any obligations with Siemens.
As a result of the dispute, several lawsuits were filed with the Moscow Arbitration Court. Two of them to the structures of Rosteh. The first lawsuit was filed by the German company Siemens, the second - by Siemens Gas Turbine Technology LLC (a joint venture between Siemens and Power Machines).
The lawsuit disputed the 2015 agreement between Siemens Gas Turbine Technology and Technopromexport on the supply of gas turbine units and the 2016 contract for the resale of these turbines to Tekhnopromexport LLC. In addition, Siemens demands the return of equipment delivered to the Crimea in circumvention of EU sanctions, and to recognize the deal on its delivery as invalid.
OAO and Tekhnopromexport LLC filed a counterclaim against Siemens and OOO Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies.