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Nord Stream is suing insurers including Lloyds of London for about 400 million euros for refusing to cover an explosion that destroyed gas infrastructure linking Western Europe to Russia, according to documents filed with the High Court.
The Switzerland-based company filed a lawsuit last month claiming insurers “failed to pay” for damages caused by underwater explosions that damaged and deformed the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines on the seabed of the Baltic Sea.
Lloyd's of London and Arch Insurance are named as representative defendants for a number of insurance companies on the policies.
Court documents show that Nord Stream provided “preliminary and high-level estimates” of the costs of dewatering the pipeline, stabilizing the pipeline, repairing and replacing the lost gas, with the cost ranging from 1.2 billion euros to 1.35 billion euros.
The cause of the September 2022 explosion in international waters has not yet been determined.
Russia was initially suspected of sabotage but denied responsibility. Ukraine has also denied involvement after U.S. and German media reports suggested pro-Ukrainian agents may be behind the attack.
Denmark and Sweden both dropped their investigations, saying they did not have enough evidence to charge anyone, and only Germany is currently investigating.
Nord Stream, owned by Gazprom, Wintershall Dea, Eon, Gasunie and Engie, said those involved were “unidentified”.
It is one of the largest claims brought to the High Court in the past year, according to litigation data analysis group Solomon Nick.
The case targets insurers such as Lloyd's of London that offer so-called primary policies, which are the first to suffer losses in any event.
The second defendant is a group of insurance companies led by a subsidiary of Bermuda-based Arch, which provided so-called excess insurance. This type of policy usually takes effect after the primary policy is paid out.
Nord Stream argued that the explosions occurred separately as far as the two sets of policies were concerned. The €400 million claim is split equally between the base and excess groups. The company also claims approximately €3.7 million in damage investigation costs and other costs.
Lloyd's of London and Arch declined to comment. Nord Stream was also contacted for comment.
Neither pipeline was operating at the time of the explosion. After Russia invaded Ukraine, it stopped the supply of Nord Stream 1. After Germany canceled the approval process, the Nord Stream 2 pipeline never came into operation.
Additional reporting by Richard Milne
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