Paris court gives Ukraine's Naftogaz go-ahead to pursue Gazprom compensation

KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine's Naftogaz can start legal proceedings in France for compensation from Gazprom for assets seized in Crimea, it said on Thursday, after a Paris court recognised an international arbitration ruling from The Hague.

Before Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, it seized Crimea in 2014 and annexed the peninsula, triggering sanctions from Western governments.

Two years ago in April 2023, Naftogaz said the arbitration court in The Hague ordered Russia to pay $5 billion in compensation for unlawfully expropriating its assets in Russian-annexed Crimea in 2014.

Paris's main civil law court has recognised The Hague ruling, Naftogaz said in a statement, describing it as "a key legal victory in its global enforcement campaign".

"The Paris Judicial Court recognised and granted leave to enforce in France the landmark $5 billion final award issued by an arbitral tribunal in The Hague against the Russian Federation," its statement said.

Neither the Paris court, Russia nor Gazprom had any immediate comment on the ruling.

As part of the legal process, Naftogaz has registered mortgages on Russian state-owned assets located in France worth over 120 million euros ($136 million) as a "first step towards enforcement of the award".

Naftogaz initiated arbitration proceedings with six other companies within Naftogaz Group in October 2016.

Its CEO Roman Chumak said the company continued to coordinate enforcement efforts across multiple jurisdictions, with successful actions already underway in the United Kingdom and Finland.

"The company remains resolute in its efforts to recover the full value of the award and defend the rights of Ukraine’s state-owned enterprises on the international stage," Chumak said.

($1 = 0.8795 euros)

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; editing by Barbara Lewis)