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Nord Stream

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Map of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines
Map of the proposed Nord Stream and connecting pipelines

Nord Stream (German–English mixed expression for "North Stream"; Russian: Северный поток, Severny potok) is a network of offshore natural gas pipelines which run under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany to provide Western Europe with natural gas. It comprises two separate projects, Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2. Both of the pipelines, each comprise two pipes, NS1 A and B as well as NS2 A and B, for a total of 4 physical pipes. Both pipelines start in Russia and land in Lubmin, Germany. NordStream is owned by a consortium of 5 energy companies: Gazprom international projects North 1 LLC (Gazprom Group company), Wintershall Dea AG, PEG Infrastruktur AG (E.ON), N.V. Nederlandse Gasunie and ENGIE. It was the first pipeline that bypassed Ukraine and Poland to deliver Russian natural gas directly to West Europe.

  • Nord Stream 1 (NS1) runs from Vyborg, in northwestern Russia near Finland, and entered service in 2011. It was operated by Nord Stream AG. From 31 August 2022, Gazprom halted delivery indefinitely, officially because of maintenance.
  • Nord Stream 2 (NS2) runs from Ust-Luga in northwestern Russia near Estonia. The pipeline was built to increase gas exports towards Europe, aiming to double annual capacity. The project was completed in 2021, but did not enter service, because Germany withheld opening permission on February 22, 2022 due to Russia recognizing the Ukrainian separatist regions of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic as independent, in line with a previous joint warning made with US president Joe Biden on February 7, 2022 to end the project if Russia were to invade Ukraine.

The project Nord Stream 2 was opposed from the start by the United States, primarily because it would increase German dependence on Russian energy. The United States later imposed sanctions on companies that were involved in the project. The U.S. sanctions were criticized heavily by German politicians as "a serious interference in the internal affairs of Germany and Europe and their sovereignty".

A piece of Nord Stream pipe on public display in Kotka, Finland

2022 sabotage

Main article: Nord Stream pipeline sabotage

On 26 September 2022, news broke of four explosions at the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines, rendering three of the four lines inoperable. Three separate investigations were started by Germany, Sweden and Denmark, the latter two were closed without publicly assigned responsibility for the damage in February 2024. In June 2024 German authorities issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian national suspected of the sabotage.

Although none of the four Nord Stream pipelines were in operation, they still contained pressurized natural gas, of which vast quantities were released into the Baltic Sea.

See also

References

  1. "Controversial Project Launched : Merkel and Medvedev Open Baltic Gas Pipeline". Der Spiegel. 2011-11-08. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  2. Cooban, Anna (31 August 2022). "Russia cuts more gas supplies to Europe as inflation hits another record". CNN. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  3. "Gazprom: Nord Stream 1 gas to stay shut until fault fixed, "workshop conditions needed"". Reuters. 2022-09-02. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  4. "Germany freezes Nord Stream 2 gas project as Ukraine crisis deepens". Reuters. 2022-02-22. Retrieved 2023-03-08.
  5. Shalal, Andrea (8 February 2022). "Biden pledges end to Nord Stream 2 if Russia invades Ukraine". Reuters. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  6. "Biden vows to end German-Russian gas pipeline if Ukraine is invaded". Los Angeles Times. 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2023-03-08.
  7. Stephen Kinzer (28 October 2022). "When pipeline politics go boom | Responsible Statecraft". Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, responsiblestatecraft.org. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  8. "US-Abgeordneter wirft Schröder "politische Prostitution" vor". Süddeutsche.de (in German). 17 May 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  9. "U.S. imposes further sanctions in connection with Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline". www.reuters.com. 23 November 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  10. "Germany "firmly rejects" U.S. sanctions on Nord Stream 2 firms". www.reuters.com. 21 December 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  11. Ruiz, Rebecca R.; Sanger, David E. (7 February 2024). "Sweden Closes Investigation of Pipeline Blasts, but Stays Silent on Cause". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2024-02-22. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  12. Gozzi, Laura (26 February 2024). "Nord Stream: Denmark closes investigation into pipeline blast". BBC News. BBC. Archived from the original on 4 March 2024. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  13. "Nord Stream sabotage: Germany issues arrest warrant — report". dw.com. 2024-08-14. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
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