Status: 09/30/2022 11:22 p.m
Denmark and Sweden believe at least two explosions, equivalent to hundreds of kilograms of explosives, were set off to damage the Nord Stream pipelines. The effects on maritime life in the Baltic Sea are worrying.
Seismological institutes measured magnitudes of 2.3 and 2.1, which “probably corresponds to an explosive charge weighing several hundred kilograms,” Denmark and Sweden said in a joint letter to the UN Security Council on Friday. This dealt with the leaks in the pipelines in an urgent debate.
Gazprom: No schedule for repairs yet
A spokesman for the Russian state-owned company Gazprom, who was connected via video, said in the UN body that there was still no timetable for repairing the leaks in the natural gas pipelines. The group has started to look for “possible solutions to make the system work again”. However, it is not yet possible to estimate how long the repairs will take. From a technical point of view, the task was “very overwhelming”. Such leaks have never existed before, according to Gazprom spokesman Sergey Kupriyanov.
Denmark and Sweden had previously confirmed that all available information indicated that the explosions at the pipelines were deliberate. It was announced on Thursday that there were four leaks in total. Previously, only three leaks had been assumed.
Gas outlets with radii between 200 and 900 meters
Two leaks each occurred in the exclusive economic zones of the two Scandinavian countries. These had led to bubbling carpets of gas on the water surface. In Swedish waters, these would have had a radius of around 900 and 200 meters, on the Danish side of around 555 and 680 meters. The Swedish Coast Guard announced that the gas leak from a leak on Nord Stream 2 had decreased. In the case of a damaged area on Nord Stream 1, on the other hand, there are no signs of weakening. The Danish-Swedish report states that “the potential impact on marine life in the Baltic Sea is worrying”. The climate impacts are “probably very significant”.
Gas leak could end Sunday
Documents show that the pipeline pipes are of different thicknesses.
The operator of Nord Stream 1 has come to the conclusion that the gas leak from the pipeline will last until October 2nd. A similar assessment of Nord Stream 2 is still pending. Experts consider an end to the gas leak to be a prerequisite for carrying out thorough investigations at the damaged areas. It is known that the tubes of the two Baltic Sea pipelines have different wall thicknesses. These are strongest on the Russian side, where the pressure level is highest, and then decrease with the pressure towards the German side. The blasts were registered in the area where the wall thicknesses were thinnest.
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Economic expert Kemfert warns of an energy war
Meanwhile, economists are warning of a fossil fuel war. Claudia Kemfert from the German Institute for Economic Research spoke to the NDR of a “geo-strategic weapon”. In their opinion, such attacks on critical infrastructures such as nuclear power plants, municipal utilities or power and supply lines could increase. Governments across Europe have a duty to strengthen the protection of Europe’s energy infrastructure.
Putin annexes Ukrainian territories – and blames the West for gas leaks
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed Western countries for the leaks on Friday. “They have resorted to sabotage. Unbelievable, but true. By organizing explosions on the Nord Stream international gas pipelines, they have effectively started destroying the common European energy infrastructure,” Putin said at a ceremony on the annexation in Moscow of four Ukrainian regions. The USA had already rejected such suggestions as “ridiculous”. For experts, references to Russia as the originator of the leaks have recently increased.
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