Norway will beef up its security at its oil and gas installations after three explosions rocked the Nordstream 1 & 2 pipelines, the country's oil and energy minister said on Tuesday.
Germany's economy minister also offered words of strength on Tuesday, saying that it knows how to-and can-defend its infrastructure.
This week, both Danish and Swedish authorities reported leaks from both the Nordstream 1 and 2 pipelines in the Baltic Sea. Neither pipeline was operational at the time, but contained gas, which is now leaking into the surrounding waters.
European officials and analysts say the leaks cannot be coincidental. A German official says evidence points to sabotage rather than a mere technical issue.
The Swedish National Seismology Center said that measurement stations in Sweden and Denmark had registered powerful subsea blasts.
13 nautical miles southwest of the Denmark Island of Bornholm, one of the three Nordstream pipeline gas leaks can be seen via satellite. The damage shows a major rupture that can be seen impacting the water across a 700-meter diameter area-nearly a kilometer.
According to Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, there were three leaks across Nordstream 1 and 2. "It is difficult to imagine that it could be accidental," Frederiksen said. The Polish Prime Minister called it a clear act of sabotage.
The Kremlin said that no cause should be ruled out at this stage.
Just yesterday, Norway's Petroleum Safety Authority cautioned that there had been reports of unidentified drones close to offshore facilities. The PSA warned that not only could it impact the transportation of oil and gas workers onto platforms, but the drones could also be used for deliberate attacks.
The odds of Nordstream 1 resuming operations yet this year are near zero, S&P Platts James Huckstepp said on Tuesday.
By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com
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Comments
Good to see that Oilprice.com has timely reporting.
People say follow the money... but in this case there are interests on both sides that would benefit. NATO has had under sea sub tracking sensors for decades, and the Baltic Sea is mostly landlocked.
European officials and analysts say the leaks cannot be coincidental. A German official says evidence points to sabotage rather than a mere technical issue.
Nord Stream AG, the pipeline operator, had on Monday morning reported an unexpected overnight drop of pressure from 105 to 7 bar in Nord Stream 2, which is filled with gas but was cancelled by Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, shortly before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A further drop of pressure was reported also on Monday afternoon in Nord Stream 1, which Russia shut down indefinitely at the start of September, initially saying it needed repairs.
Amid the speculation over sabotage, suspicion immediately turned to potential culprits – with fingers pointed at Russia whose pipelines were hit.
Among those rushing to point the fingers at Russia was the Polish prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki and the US Secretary of State Anthong Blinken but this is to be expected.
The question is why would Russia commit such an act of sabotage on two gas pipeline it owns when it has already shut Nord Stream 1 completely and halted all gas shipments to Germany and the EU via that pipeline while Nord Stream 2 isn't operational anyway.
Two countries have vested interest in inflicting the most damage on Russian-owned property: the United States and its puppet Poland. That is why they both rushed to accuse Russia of being behind the sabotage without even a any evidence or proof.
Dr Mamdouh G Salameh
International Oil Economist
Global Energy Expert