Russia is able to complete the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline on its own, said Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee.
“Today technological risks are being addressed by our facilities, therefore, Nord Stream 2 will be completed. Of course, this will require a bit more time, but we do not have technological obstacles to do this on our own, ”he said in the program“ Moscow. Kremlin. Putin "on the channel" Russia 1 ".
The need to complete the gas pipeline on its own appeared at the end of December, when the Swiss company Allseas, which was laying the underwater elements of Nord Stream 2, announced that it would not continue work because of the threat of suffering from US sanctions. Restrictions are provided for in Section 7503 of the United States Defense Budget Act, which refers to sanctions against companies providing vessels "for the construction of certain pipelines intended for the export of Russian energy resources."
Nord Stream 2 AG spokesman Jens Müller told reporters on December 23 that about 2,300 km of the 2,460 km pipeline had already been laid.
Russian President Vladimir Putin at a January 11 press conference held following talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said that Russia could build the remaining 160 km of the gas pipeline on its own.
“We will certainly be able to complete (Nord Stream - 2. - RT) on our own. Without attracting foreign partners. The question is in terms ... Of course, the completion of construction will be postponed for several months, but I hope that by the end of this year or in the first quarter of next year, work will be completed and the gas pipeline will work, ”Putin said.
It was previously assumed that construction would be completed by the end of 2019.
"Fortune" and "Academician Chersky"
According to information published on the Nord Stream 2 project website, it remains to complete the construction of a gas pipeline in Danish territorial waters and a small part of the German section.
- Alexey Miller
- Reuters
- © Maxim Shemetov
Alexander Frolov, deputy director general of the National Energy Institute, told RT that the construction would be completed using the opportunities that Russia has.
“There will be no need to attract foreign partners,” he said.
According to experts, to complete the construction, Gazprom will use the Fortuna barge, which is now located in the Baltic Sea region, and the Akademik Chersky vessel operating in the Far East.
At the same time, “Fortune” cannot be used on the Danish site, Frolov noted.
“It worked at the initial stage of laying the Nord Stream-2 in Russian territorial waters. But to work exclusively in the economic zone of Denmark is not suitable. The vessel does not have the dynamic positioning system required by the local controller, which allows it to automatically maintain the position of the ship at a certain given point in space at sea. And the ship "Academic Chersky", on the contrary, possesses. Therefore, as I understand it, the main hopes are now placed on him, ”says Frolov.
Leading expert of the National Energy Security Fund Igor Yushkov notes that the Akademik Chersky vessel worked mainly on the Sakhalin shelf, where it laid pipes of smaller diameter than in the Nord Stream-2.
“Therefore, now it must be refitted. We will wait until the corresponding work is completed. It will happen soon, ”said RT expert.
He emphasized that Fortuna could lay a gas pipeline on the German section. She will be assisted by the MRTS Defender pipe-laying base.
Purely technically, Russian vessels are able to cope with the completion of the gas pipeline, Frolov said.
“The Baltic Sea is not very deep. Nord Stream 2 is laid at a depth of 200 meters. For comparison: “Turkish Stream” is laid at a depth of more than two kilometers, ”he explained.
Possible n
According to experts, the United States will not abandon attempts to interfere with the construction and operation of Nord Stream 2. So far, the Americans do not plan to impose further sanctions, but new measures to counter construction are not ruled out, analysts say.
- Angela Merkel and Vladimir Putin
- Reuters
- © Pavel Golovkin / Pool
Frolov believes that the United States will use methods of political influence, rather than direct sanctions.
“I believe that the United States will rather hinder the full operation of the gas pipeline than its construction. To do this, they will act through their allies and EU structures, ”he said.
In particular, disputes will continue regarding the use of the onshore part of the first branch of the Nord Stream pipeline - the OPAL gas pipeline, whose capacity is 36 billion cubic meters of gas per year. In 2009, the Third Energy Package was adopted in Europe, the purpose of which is to prevent gas suppliers from dominating the market.
As a result, Gazprom gained access to only half of OPAL's facilities. In 2016, the European Commission expanded access to this gas pipeline for a Russian state-owned company. However, the decision of the European Commission was challenged by Poland in the EU Supreme Court. The lawsuit with the Poles is led by the German gas regulator Bundesnetzagentur.
According to Yushkov, Germany will be the main guarantor in the EU of the uninterrupted operation of the pipeline, since the implementation of this project is beneficial to them.
“Germany, at least, will try to lobby the US for the lack of additional sanctions against Nord Stream 2.” It is possible that the Americans will try to interfere with the insurance of ships that are building the gas pipeline. In this case, the Germans can insure the vessels, ”he believes.
In any case, it is important for Russia to complete the construction of Nord Stream 2, the analyst said.
“Now Ukraine is a key link in the transit of Russian gas. This is an abnormal situation, if only because the Ukrainian gas transportation system is old, it has not been repaired since Soviet times, which creates unnecessary risks during transportation. However, we cannot transfer volumes that come from this country to any other routes. Thus, Nord Stream 2 should increase the reliability of gas supply to Europeans, and Russia should have the opportunity to choose which arteries to deliver blue fuel to Europe, ”concluded Yushkov.