Amsterdam court lifts freeze on Gazprom’s stake in Wintershall Noordzee

The Amsterdam Court of Appeal has removed the asset freeze on Gazprom’s 50% shareholding in the gas-producing company Wintershall Noordzee, according to a report by Moscow-based Vedomosti newspaper. The stake had been seized as part of a legal action initiated by the Ukrainian firm Avtodorkomplekt against Russia and Gazprom. However, the appellate court determined that Avtodorkomplekt had sought to improperly bypass Russia’s sovereign immunity.

Avtodorkomplekt, which was involved in the extraction, processing, and sale of granite, is currently in bankruptcy proceedings. Court documents indicate that the company’s business had been expropriated by a state-owned enterprise of the Donetsk People’s Republic. In August 2024, a Ukrainian court ruled that Gazprom, Gazprom Capital, and Gazprom International Limited were responsible for Russia’s debt to Avtodorkomplekt.

In June 2025, the Ukrainian company filed a request with the Amsterdam District Court to seize assets belonging to Gazprom International Limited, along with three other Gazprom structures — Zapadnaya Aziya, Gazprom Neft Badra, and Gazprom Neft Middle East.

The court approved the request and set the claim amount at €660 million. As part of the ruling, it ordered the seizure of Gazprom International Limited’s 50% stake in Wintershall Noordzee, its full ownership of Gazprom International Projects in the Netherlands, its full ownership of Gazprom EP International Services in the Netherlands, as well as all shares in Gazprom Neft Badra and Gazprom Neft Middle East.

In September, Gazprom International Limited and the three affiliated companies appealed the decision to the Amsterdam Court of Appeal. The appellate judges sided with Gazprom, concluding that Avtodorkomplekt had abused legal procedures in an effort to circumvent Russia’s jurisdictional immunity. The court also ruled that the interests of the Gazprom entities in lifting the seizure outweighed Avtodorkomplekt’s interest in keeping it in place.

Wintershall Noordzee operates as a joint venture between Germany’s Wintershall Dea and Gazprom International Limited. In March 2024, a Gazprom subsidiary put its stake in the company up for sale.

By Tamilla Hasanova