Status: 06.09.2022 09:03 am
After the suspension of gas supplies via Nord Stream 1, Gazprom speaks of a design flaw in a turbine. Federal Minister of Economics Habeck does not assume that it will be put back into operation.
The Russian gas company Gazprom justified the delivery stop via Nord Stream 1 with an alleged design error in the Siemens Energy turbine used. Because of the increased risk of fire and explosion, the Rostechnadzor technical supervisor has prohibited the turbine from continuing to operate, Gazprom said in Moscow. A company with the identified deficiencies contradicts “the norms of Russian legislation”.
Gazprom: Oil leak at turbine creates risk of explosion
Gazprom failed to resume gas supplies to Europe after scheduled turbine maintenance. The company justified this with allegedly leaking oil from the Siemens Energy unit. The Trent 60 turbine at Russia’s Portovaya pumping station is leaking oil at a spot where it is very hot, Gazprom wrote. The oil could ignite and thus endanger the safety of the entire pumping station.
The problem did not occur when the turbine was serviced in July. However, it has already been observed in other turbines of this type. This suggests that the error was in the design and can only be remedied by a conversion at Siemens Energy.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov also spoke of a “potentially dangerous situation for the company” as a result of the oil spill. For this reason, the turbine – and thus the pipeline – cannot be put back into service without prior repair work. However, Gazprom remains a reliable gas supplier.
Justification for Siemens Energy incomprehensible
Siemens Energy could not understand this new representation, said a spokesman for the company. For the time being, the assessment that the reported findings do not constitute a reason for the cessation of operations applies. “Such leaks do not normally affect the operation of a turbine and can be sealed on site.”
In the past, too, there had been no standstill due to such oil leaks. Siemens Energy points out that there are enough additional turbines available in the Portovaya compressor station to operate Nord Stream 1, the spokesman continued.
Habeck does not assume that it will be put back into operation
Meanwhile, Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck is preparing for the fact that Russia will no longer supply gas to Europe via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. “There’s still a bit of gas coming through the Ukraine pipeline, but Nord Stream 1 being reopened isn’t one of the scenarios I’m assuming,” said the Greens politician on ZDF.
The federal government considers the technical problems with the pipeline to be advanced. She accuses Moscow of refusing gas supplies for political reasons. Russia blames the delivery stop on the West and its sanctions.
According to the Interfax news agency, Kremlin spokesman Peskov made this clear once again at the economic forum in Vladivostok: “We don’t know how the repair work is to be carried out because the sanctions are preventing it.” The Kremlin states “with regret that the responsibility for the situation lies entirely with the European states and the states that have introduced sanctions against our country”.