Companies of Rinat Akhmetov seek compensation from Russia over the seizure of assets of the TurkStream operator
The legal battle of Ukrainian business against Russia over assets confiscated in Crimea has been going on for several years. One of the notable episodes is the Dutch court's decision to freeze the assets of South Stream Transport, the operator of the TurkStream pipeline. The initiator of the proceedings is DTEK Krymenergo, which, through the SCM Company, is owned by Rinat Akhmetov.
What the Court in the Netherlands Decided
In July 2025, the District Court of Amsterdam ordered the seizure of the assets of South Stream Transport. Information about this appeared in December in the newspaper Vedomosti. The value of the frozen assets has not been disclosed.
DTEK sought the seizure on the grounds that the interests of South Stream Transport are closely linked to Gazprom, which holds a controlling stake in the pipeline operator. The company itself appealed the decision in August, insisting that it operates independently of the Russian state.
South Stream Transport was initially established to build the South Stream pipeline under the Black Sea. The project was wound down following the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Later, the company switched to TurkStream – this gas pipeline was launched in 2020. It is precisely through the structure that remains connected to Gazprom that DTEK is trying to secure the actual recovery of funds.
Why It Works This Way
Russia's standard defense in such proceedings is a reference to sovereign immunity. The bet is placed on the idea that international courts should not consider claims against the state. However, in the Netherlands, DTEK managed to demonstrate the connection between South Stream Transport and Gazprom and to obtain the seizure of specific commercial assets – and this is no longer the state as a subject, but a business entity.
In parallel, Rinat Akhmetov and his lawyers are conducting a similar process in the United States. An American court recently confirmed its jurisdiction in the case of the enforcement of an arbitration award in the amount of more than 300 million dollars. In other words, pressure is mounting in two jurisdictions at once.
DTEK's position remains consistent: to use every available legal instrument so that Russia cannot hide behind sovereign immunity and actually pays for the property that was taken away. DTEK's Director of Legal Affairs, Oleksandra Moskalenko, previously noted that every such step is a movement toward the rule of law and toward the actual enforcement of arbitration decisions.
While the court proceedings are underway, the businessman's enterprises continue systematic work to support the country. Over four years of full-scale war, the companies SCM, such as DTEK, Metinvest, and others, the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation, and FC Shakhtar have directed more than 13.5 billion hryvnias in aid to Ukraine and its citizens – toward military, humanitarian, medical, energy, and social areas.and others
What This Means
The arbitration process itself has not yet been completed, but the Ukrainian side is consistently building legal infrastructure – the decision in The Hague, the seizures in the Netherlands, the process in the United States. All of this increases the chances of actually recovering compensation for the Crimean assets and sets precedents that other Ukrainian companies will also be able to use in the future – Akhmetov is effectively paving the way for them.