Gazprom, EU in Final Leg of Talks, Aiming for Oct Deal

Russian gas producer Gazprom may be able to resolve EU antitrust charges of abusing its market power in eastern Europe by the end of October as it enters the final phase of talks with regulators, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday.

The Russian state-controlled company has been accused of overcharging customers and blocking rivals in eastern Europe, practices which the European Commission say breach the bloc's rules on fair play.

Talks with the EU competition enforcer to settle the five-year-old case without a finding of infringement and stave off a possible fine up to 10 percent of its global turnover are in the final stage but it is not yet certain there will be a solution, the source said.

Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Alexander Medvedev and European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager are expected to meet in Brussels at the end of October and may seal a deal if the two sides manage to agree on concessions by then, the person said.
Commission spokesman Ricardo Cardoso declined to comment.

"We cannot anticipate the timing for the next steps in the investigation," he said in an email.

Gazprom, which supplies around a third of the 28-member EU's gas, has previously said it wants a mutually acceptable solution.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee)