According to Gazprom, a component is missing
Russia throttles gas supplies to Germany
06/14/2022, 5:05 p.m
Because a component from Siemens did not return in time from repairs, Gazprom wants to significantly reduce the gas delivery volumes through Nord Stream 1. According to the Russian state-owned company, deliveries to Germany would be reduced by 40 percent.
The Russian energy giant Gazprom is reducing the maximum gas delivery volumes through the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline to Germany by 40 percent. The state-owned company said the reason was delays in repair work by Siemens. A gas compressor unit was not returned in time from repairs. As a result, only up to 100 million cubic meters of gas could be pumped through the pipeline every day – or around 60 percent of the previously planned daily volume of 167 million cubic meters of gas, it said.
“Currently, the security of supply is still guaranteed,” said a spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of Economics. “We are monitoring the situation and examining the facts.” It was unclear whether the Munich-based Siemens AG or the split-off energy technology group Siemens Energy was responsible for the repairs. Both companies initially did not comment. Siemens still holds 35 percent of Siemens Energy.
The Nord Stream pipeline, commissioned in 2011, is the highest-capacity gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. It runs from Vyborg in Russia northwest of St. Petersburg to Lubmin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. According to the operating company, 59.2 billion cubic meters of natural gas were exported from Russia to Europe through the pipeline in 2021.
The Yamal-Europe line had previously not been filled. The transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, which is well below plan, has also been reduced. Energy prices had already increased as a result of the previous restrictions, because overall less gas flows from Russia to Europe. The completed Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline has not yet been put into operation.