Gas began flowing to Germany from Russia early on Thursday through a key pipeline that was taken offline for routine maintenance 10 days ago, alleviating fears in Europe that it would become the latest target in the escalating economic war between Moscow and the West.
The pipeline, Nord Stream 1, has been offline since July 11 for annual repairs and is set to resume operations on Thursday. But after weeks of back and forth between Russia and Europe, European Union officials are increasingly worried that the pipeline won’t be operational for much longer, as punishment for Moscow’s objections to the pipeline. Ukraine invasion.
The suspense is another reminder of Germany’s dependence, and much of Europe, on Russian energy. It prompted European Union leaders this week to urge members to cut natural gas use immediately to prepare for what could be uncertain natural gas supplies and unstable before winter.
Europe’s heavy reliance on Russian energy has haunted officials who believe Moscow is using its oil and gas to influence Ukraine’s support in the war.
Klaus Müller, the head of Germany’s federal network agency, which oversees the pipeline network that transports fossil fuels to the country, said that Gazprom has indicated that it will only send 30% of the available quantity. can be transported through pipelines. “Can be changed,” Mr. Mûller wrote on Twitter on Thursday.
Better understanding of the Russo-Ukrainian War
But in the weeks leading up to the shutdown, Gazprom reduced pipeline traffic to 40% of capacity. Reply, Berlin declares ‘gas crisis’ and start taking steps to encourage fuel conservation.
The Russians blamed the reduced dial output on not having a turbine from one of the six compressors to maintain the pressure needed to bring the gas along 1,222 kilometers or 760 miles of the pipeline.
The European Union has predicted that Russia will not restart gas flows. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “We have to prepare for a potential complete disruption of Russian gas and this is a possible scenario.
Russian President Putin has indicated that the flows will continue, but not at full capacity. Speaking to reporters late Tuesday at Tehran after meeting with leaders of Iran and TurkeyHe said that some other turbines need to be repaired, and with others brought offline, Gazprom will only send “half the expected volume” through the Nord Stream pipeline.
German and European officials have rejected Gazprom’s argument that the bend flow is related to the repair of a turbine, forcing the Russian side to seek to harm Western economies by cutting off access to a turbine. near natural gas. Natural gas prices in Europe have more than quadrupled year-on-year.
The European Union’s executive body says Europe must cut its natural gas use dramatically – by a total of 15 per cent between now and spring – to avert a major crisis as Russia cuts reduce gas exports, the European Union’s executive body said on Wednesday, calling on people to make difficult sacrifices among the world’s richest nations.
“Russia is blackmailing us,” Ms. von der Leyen said as she introduced the EU’s plan to reduce gas consumption. “Russia is using energy as a weapon.”
Maintaining a reduced natural gas flow could benefit the Russian leader, helping him keep Europeans in a state of protracted unrest and near panic, analysts say. Russia has stopped supplying gas through other major pipelines to Europe that pass through Poland and Ukraine.
But other analysts say the war for turbines is a Russian attempt to ensure the pipeline is maintained, despite sanctions.
Katja Yafimava, a senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Research.
