PJSC Gazprom has completed construction of Nord Stream natural gas pipeline, according to management committee chairman Alexey Miller. The announcement came despite ongoing legal actions regarding the sourcing of gas to be transported.
European Union regulations stipulate that gas transported by pipeline must be provided by a company other than the pipeline’s operator, the application of which to Nord Stream 2 was most recently affirmed by Germany’s high court (OGJ Online, Aug. 26, 2021). The court’s ruling can be appealed, or Gazprom could agree to transport third-party production via the pipeline. Germany’s regulator also still needs to test and certify the pipeline.
The 55-billion cu m/year, 760-mile Nord Stream 2 system roughly parallels Nord Stream 1’s route, doubling transportation capacity between Ust-Luga, Russia, and Greifswald, Germany, along the Baltic Sea’s floor. Nord Stream 1 has been operating since 2011.
Uniper SE, Wintershall DEA, OMV Group, Engie SA, and Royal Dutch Shell PLC are Gazprom’s Nord Stream 2 project partners.