After construction work on the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline has stopped, Russia does not expect it to start until the end of 2020. According to Russian news agencies, the Russian energy minister Alexander Nowak named this new period.
So far, the Russian leadership had only spoken of a delay of a few months. US sanctions had stopped the project because the Swiss company Allseas pulled its special ships out of fear of punishment. In order to lay the tubes on the bottom of the Baltic Sea, such ships are necessary.
The United States justifies its action against Nord Stream 2 by protecting energy security in Europe. They warn of excessive dependence on Russian gas. Several EU countries and Ukraine are against the pipeline. The US, on the other hand, is criticized for wanting to sell its own, expensive, produced liquefied gas in Europe.
Von der Leyen criticizes US sanctions
EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen criticized the US sanctions against European companies for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Although the project "also has a political dimension", the EU Commission uses its resources to protect the interests of the eastern EU states. "Another page says that the EU Commission is firmly opposed to sanctions against European companies that are involved in projects in accordance with the legal system," said the CDU politician in an interview with SPIEGEL.
The line costs almost ten billion euros and was originally supposed to pump gas to Europe by the end of this year. Nord Stream 2 is designed for a capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. Around 2,300 kilometers of the line with two strands have already been laid.
According to Russian sources, the Russian "Akademik Tscherski" is the only ship that could complete the work. It is currently located in the Far Eastern port of Nakhodka in the Japanese Sea. It takes weeks for the ship from Asia to be in Europe. As announced by the Ministry of Energy, the special ship still needs to be equipped with the necessary equipment. Russian analysts expect additional costs for the prefabricated building of a two to three-digit million amount.
