On Friday, Reuters reported that the European Commission (EC) approved the takeover of German gas giant Uniper by the German government.

The deal was approved after a conclusion was reached it would offer no competition concerns, and it could be done under the EU merger regulation. Still left to be done is the approval of the company’s bailout under state aid rules, which will essentially complete a full nationalization.

The Commission said in a statement, “The transaction was prompted by the ongoing European energy crisis, in particular the cessation of Russian gas deliveries and the sharp rise in gas prices, which resulted in Uniper, Germany’s largest importer of Russian gas, requiring significant capital injections to prevent its insolvency.”

The bailout, which is expected to cost over €51 billion ($54 billion), is expected to be approved next week at a planned extraordinary shareholder meeting.

Uniper suffered among the biggest losses in Germany’s corporate history as gas prices soared, and the plentiful supply of Russian pipeline gas gradually was shut off, forcing it to purchase gas on the expensive spot market. The government was forced to step in to rescue Uniper to prevent a domino effect from spreading throughout the entire energy sector.

Uniper has said it will seek billions of euros from Russia’s Gazprom, in compensation for undelivered natural gas deliveries. The company has opened an arbitration process, seeking reimbursement. Gazprom has denied all responsibility for the failed gas deliveries, or any violation of contracts, or the legitimacy of Uniper’s claims.