The commercial deals connected with Gazprom's Nord Stream 2 : a review of strings and benefits attached to the controversial Russian pipelines

This paper reviews the multiple strings and benefits attached to the single most controversial gas pipeline project in Europe - the second Russian twin subsea pipeline that is currently under construction in the Baltic Sea. While much attention has been paid to the question of why and how the Russian statecontrolled energy giant seeks to circumvent Ukraine as a transit country for its delivery of gas to Western Europe, hardly any attention has been paid to the benefits gained by the companies and political entities directly involved in the preparation and construction of Nord Stream 2. The paper seeks to fill this gap in the debate by taking a closer look at the business deals and commercial actors involved in the implementation of this second Russian natural gas pipeline project in the Baltic Sea. It highlights how local and national economic interests and European energy companies' motivations for participating in the project go beyond the volumes of Russian natural gas that Gazprom expects to deliver to European customers through its Baltic Sea pipelines from 202