Gazprom has been allowed to use more than original 50% of Opal pipeline

The EU lifted a cap on Gazprom’s use of the Opal Pipeline in Germany, which takes gas from its Nord Stream Baltic Sea pipeline to end-users in Germany and the Czech Republic, opening the way for Russia to expand Nord Stream’s capacity and bypass Ukraine as a gas transit route, in a move that will cost 425 million dollars to Ukraine in missed transit fees.
Together with a separate move to settle an antitrust case against Gazprom, the resolution of key disputes with Moscow angered some EU nations who want a tougher stance taken toward Russia over its military actions in Ukraine and Syria.
Reuters reported earlier that rivals will be given access to up to 20% of Opal’s 36 Bcm of annual capacity.
Since its completion in 2011, Gazprom has only been allowed to use 50% of the Opal Pipeline under an EU ruling aimed at preventing dominance of the supply infrastructure.