Out of service due to the war in Ukraine, the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia with Germany were suddenly hit by spectacular and unexplained leaks into the Baltic Sea, raising suspicions of sabotage on Tuesday. The Swedish seismic institute said two underwater explosions were recorded before the leaks.
The three major leaks identified since Monday off the Danish island of Bornholm are visible on the surface with bubbles ranging from 200 to 1 kilometer in diameter, the Danish military announced, with supporting images.
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline was the first victim of a sharp drop in pressure on Monday, followed a few hours later by Nord Stream 1, which follows a nearly parallel route under the Baltic. Denmark and Sweden had confirmed on Tuesday morning that they faced three leaks in the two separate pipelines.
One of the Nord Stream 1 leaks occurred in Denmark’s exclusive economic zone, the other in Sweden, according to the two countries. Objects of geopolitical pulse in recent months, the two oil pipelines operated by a consortium dependent on the Russian giant Gazprom are not operational due to the consequences of the war in Ukraine. But both were still full of gas.
An exceptional situation
The Kremlin, towards which many eyes have been turned, said it was “extremely concerned”, believing that “no” hypothesis should be ruled out, including that of sabotage.
The pipeline operator, the Nord Stream consortium, said it could not see or assess the damage, but acknowledged the exceptional nature of the situation.
Military officials regularly warn of the risk of sabotaging essential civilian underwater installations, such as telecommunications cables, electrical or hydrocarbon connections. Denmark sent two military ships to the scene accompanied by helicopters, while the Swedish government called an emergency meeting on Tuesday night.
state of emergency
Despite uncertainty about the cause of the leaks, Copenhagen immediately placed its energy infrastructure on orange alert, the second-highest level of vigilance.
Companies in the sector must implement specific measures to increase the safety of factories and facilities, especially with regard to access to and control of facilities.
A “targeted attack”
Built in parallel to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was intended to double the capacity to import Russian gas to Germany. But its imminent launch has been put on hold, in retaliation for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Gazprom also gradually reduced gas volumes delivered by Nord Stream 1 until the pipeline was completely shut down in late August, blaming Western sanctions for delaying necessary repairs to the pipeline.
The German authorities have not yet reacted. But according to a source close to the German government, quoted by the German newspaper Taggesspiegel, “everything speaks against a coincidence” and in favor of a “targeted attack.” Navigation within a radius of five nautical miles (about nine kilometers) around the three leaks was prohibited, as was their overflight within a radius of one kilometer.
According to the authorities, the events have no consequences for the safety or health of the residents of the place. The direct environmental impact must also be local and limited. But natural gas, or more precisely methane, has a strong greenhouse effect when released directly into the atmosphere. Together with her Polish counterpart, the Danish Prime Minister inaugurated the Baltic Pipe on Tuesday, a new gas pipeline that connects Norway with Poland and passes through Denmark.
Source: BFM TV
