FILE PHOTO: People protest with posters that read "Nature refuel instead liquid gas, LNG unfortunately not cool" ahead of the roundtable meeting on the federal plans of a possible construction of an LNG terminal in the baltic sea off Ruegen island to ensure german energy supplies following the Russian invasion to Ukraine in Binz, Germany, April 20, 2023. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo
BERLIN (Reuters) - The German resort town of Binz has asked anti-money laundering authorities to investigate the capital of Deutsche ReGas, operator of a planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal which the town opposes on environmental grounds.
Germany has fast-tracked the building to LNG terminals as it looks to reduce its reliance on piped Russian supply.
But Binz this month responded to parliament's passing of a reform to speed up the process by saying it would take legal action against the federal government's plans to build LNG terminals off the Baltic Sea coast.
An examination into Deutsche ReGas showed an "opaque financing background", the firm of Geulen and Klinger, for lawyers for the municipality of Ostseebad, said in a statement on Friday.
Deutsche ReGas, which had invested 100 million euros ($111.24 million) in an already operating terminal project in Lumbin, said it "resolutely rejected" the allegations.
"A suspicion of a lack of transparency with regard to the funds invested in Deutsche ReGas and its bodies can be ruled out," it said in a statement.
Binz's lawyers said they requested further checks from the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
"The FIU cannot provide any information on processes from the operational analysis," a spokesperson for the FIU said.
($1 = 0.8990 euros)
(Reporting by Riham Alkousaa and Holger Hansen; editing by Rachel More and Louise Heavens)
