Brexit: Gazprom 'considering moving operations from London over EU trade concerns'
The company opened its trading operations in London in 1999, which now acts as the its EU headquarters
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Your support makes all the difference.Russia's energy giant Gazprom is reportedly considering moving its operations out of the UK in light of potential trading difficulties associated with Britain’s departure from the European Union.
Citing sources, the Financial Times reported that Gazprom, the world’s largest natural gas producer, is concerned that Brexit could hinder trade with the EU or make it more costly.
“Running our European trading operations out of London is not advantageous any longer […]“We have to look at the impact and our options,” one of the people with knowledge of the matter was quoted by the FT as saying.
The company opened its trading operations in London in 1999, which now acts as the its EU headquarters, according to the FT.
Gazprom was not immediately available for comment when approached by the Independent.
Several companies have warned they might retreat from London or move some of their operations out of the UK following the Brexit vote.
For months, there has been widespread speculation that thousands of financial jobs, currently based in London, could be migrated to cities like Dublin, Paris or Frankfurt, so that the banks affected can continue to offer their services to EU clients.
Lloyd's of London, which is both the world’s biggest and the world's oldest insurance market, last week confirmed that it will be setting up a new insurance company in Brussels, to secure a European foothold.
Earlier this month, Richard Gnodde, the Europe chief executive of banking giant Goldman Sachs, confirmed the bank will relocate hundreds of staff out of London before any Brexit deal is struck.
Xavier Rolet, the chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, warned earlier this year that Brexit poses a risk to the global financial system and could cost the City of London up to 230,000 jobs.
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