At the end of September, several detonations destroyed the two Nord Stream tubes on the bottom of the Baltic Sea. It is not clear who is responsible for this. However, the Russian gas giant Gazprom seems ready to spend a lot of money on repairs.
According to the New York Times, Russia is considering repairing the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. In the past few weeks, Nord Stream AG, as the operator, has checked what it would cost to repair the underwater tube, the newspaper reports, citing a person familiar with the plans. Nord Stream AG is 51 percent owned by the Russian gas company Gazprom. The other 49 percent of the tube is owned equally by BASF subsidiary Wintershall and Eon.
An estimate puts the cost at at least $500 million. However, it is still unclear what damage has been caused to the inside of the tube by the salt water from the Baltic Sea, to which it has been exposed for the past three months. The “New York Times” leaves it open how many cost estimates were obtained. Gazprom boss Alexei Miller said in October that repairs would take at least a year.
At the end of September, a total of four leaks in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines were discovered after explosions near the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm. After examining the tubes, the Swedish public prosecutor was able to confirm an act of sabotage, but could not say who was responsible.
The Polish and Ukrainian governments blame Russia for the detonations without being able to provide any evidence. The Russian government has denied responsibility for the leaks and is pointing the finger at the UK – also without proof.
Russia had pumped gas from Siberia to Germany and other European countries through Nord Stream 1 until the delivery stop. Nord Stream 2 was never commissioned because of the Russian attack on Ukraine.
