Gazprom said late Friday its Nord Stream 1 pipeline would remain shut down indefinitely. The state-run energy firm said it found leaks during a maintenance check. Germany’s economy minister warned that Russia would likely keep the pipeline closed. Loading Something is loading.
Russia’s state-run energy giant Gazprom said late Friday it will keep shut ifs Nord Stream 1 natural gas pipeline into Europe indefinitely after leaks were detected, dealing another blow to the region’s energy crisis.
“Gas transmission via the Nord Stream has been fully shut down until the operation defects in the equipment are eliminated,” Gazprom said in a statement before the pipeline was expected to reopen in Germany.
The company said among its findings was a leakage of oil at the Trent 60 compressor unit. The gas turbine is part of Nord Stream 1, a pipeline that runs 1,224 kilometers (761 miles ) under the Baltic Sea to northeastern Germany. Gazprom said its maintenance work was carried out with turbine producer Siemens.
The pipeline was shut down on August 31 for three days of maintenance. Gazprom in August unexpectedly said it would close the pipeline for maintenance but reopen it on September 2 if no anomalies were found.
Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck before Gazprom’s announcement Friday said Russia cannot be relied on for energy purposes. “We should not count on gas coming via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline over the winter,” he told reporters.
European leaders had been bracing for Gazprom to close the pipeline indefinitely as Russia this year has repeatedly cut gas flows into Europe since its invasion of Ukraine in late February. Western nations hit Russia with a range of sanctions and the European Union has pledged to reduce dependence on Russian gas.
Europe has been scrambling to secure energy supplies and that has sent prices for natural gas and electricity soaring this year. Natural gas is a key source of electricity generation.
Habeck recently said Germany’s natural gas storage is 80% full and the country will reach its October target early. The International Energy Agency has said the EU needs to increase supply reserves to at least 90% for a safe winter.
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