Schwerin (dpa / mv) – The Climate Foundation Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has transferred a fine in the dispute over the naming of companies involved in the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Two payments of around 1,000 and around 2,000 euros ordered by the district court of Schwerin were made on time, confirmed the foundation board member Erwin Sellering (SPD) on Friday of the German Press Agency. The newspapers “Die Welt” and “Bild” previously reported that they are demanding that the companies be named.
Both the district court in Schwerin and, on appeal, the higher regional court in Rostock had established that the foundation had a duty to provide information. The foundation then appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court. According to Sellering, the fines must be paid as long as at least one preliminary decision has not been made.
According to the foundation, going before the highest German court is intended to prevent the names of the companies it has commissioned to support the pipeline construction from becoming public and causing them disadvantages.
According to the media report, the parliamentary manager of the CDU in the state parliament, Sebastian Ehlers, said: “The process is just bizarre.” From the point of view of the CDU, it must be checked whether the payments of fines and court costs from the foundation’s assets meet the criteria of infidelity.
Sellering disagreed, rather he sees it as the duty of the board to defend itself against unjustified claims against the foundation and to protect companies that have worked on the pipeline. He also explained this in a letter to Birgit Hesse (SPD), President of the State Parliament.
The open legal questions are delaying the settlement of the foundation, which is controversial because of the support for the pipeline construction. The climate foundation and the state government had agreed that the board of directors would step down after the end of the foundation’s business operations. This had supported the construction of the German-Russian gas pipeline Nord Stream 2.