Report by Shuchi Giridhar
The Nord Stream gas pipeline, transporting gas from Russia to Europe, has experienced some major gas leaks. It has been reported that there are 2 gas leaks in the Nord Stream1 and 2 gas leaks in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. So, there is a total of 4 gas leaks.
What is the Nord Stream1 gas pipeline?
The Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline is the largest gas pipeline in the world. It stretches 1,200 km under the Baltic Sea. The Nord Stream 1 pipeline goes all the way from the Russian coast near St. Petersburg to north-eastern Germany.
It has been active since the year 2011. It transports 170 cubic metres of gas per day to Europe. Just before the Russia-Ukraine war, it was shut down by Russia due to technical issues and has not been activated since then.
A Nord Stream 2 pipeline was recently built but was not activated due to the Russia-Ukraine war.
The pipeline is owned by the company Nord Stream AG. The company’s biggest investor is Gazprom – a company owned by Russia.
What happened?
On Monday, 26th September, a pressure drop in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was noticed by its operator. It was suggested that there was a leak in the pipeline. It was later confirmed by the Danish Energy Authority that there really was a gas leak in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
A few hours after the initial leak, another Nord Stream operator reported that there was another undersea gas leak, this time in the Nord Stream 1 pipeline.
Sweden’s Maritime Authority warned of two gas leaks in the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. On Thursday a new leak opened up in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. This leak was confirmed by a Swedish Coast guard. The leak was spotted off South Sweden. The distance between the first leak on the north stream to pipeline and the second leak is 1.8 km or one nautical mile. Seismologists have found out that explosions were recorded just before the leaks were discovered.
Two of the leaks are on the Danish side of the sea and the other two on the Swedish side.
If no gas was flowing and the pipelines were shut, why is there an issue?
Sea water exerts pressure on the pipelines. If the pipelines are left empty, they will burst or break under the pressure of the sea water. So, even if they are not being used for active transport of gas, the pipelines will need to have some gas in them to keep them intact.
The leak in the pipelines will not just take time and money to correct, immediately, there are the following consequences:
A. Europe has a winter approaching. It will not be able to import gas from Russia to heat its homes. This can mean a human catastrophe as winters in Europe are harsh.
B. Russia will not be able to export gas without repairing the pipelines. This is expensive and time consuming. Russia is already in a war and gas sales are its chief source of revenue now.
C. The marine pollution caused by the gas in the ocean has already led to significant loss of marine life.
What is the reason behind the leaks?
It is quite hard to determine the cause of the leaks. According to experts and analysts, such leaks are quite rare. The European Union has declared that the leaks are a result of sabotage.
On Wednesday, 28th September, Moscow said that it was stupid to accuse Russia of sabotaging its own pipes.
Investigations are being carried out by Armed forces, coast guards, maritime authorities, energy agencies and police from countries such as Sweden, Germany, and Denmark. Denmark’s Defence minister has had a meeting with NATO general secretary Jens Stoltenberg. The Prosecution Authority of Sweden said that it will review information from a police investigation to take further action. It may take a week or two for further investigation as the leak has not calmed down fully.
Many analysts are of the view that the US is behind the attacks on the Nord Stream pipeline.
Since the war broke out, Russia has started doing international trade in the Russian currency – Roubles, instead of dollars. It has also been selling natural gas at a discount. This has affected the value of the dollar and also affected oil and gas prices. Saudi Arabia, an ally of the US, earns its income almost entirely from hydrocarbon (crude oil and gas) exports.
Further, Russia has, much to the world’s surprise, sustained military action in Ukraine since February and also annexed 4 Ukrainian provinces. These provinces make up about half of Ukraine land. The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has made an announcement that these provinces will become a part of Russia after a referendum in which the citizens will vote. It is expected that the citizens will want to join Russia. Ukraine, on the other hand, has mentioned, yet again, that it will not negotiate with Russia.
The other factor that supports US involvement in the blasts that led to the leaks is the fact that all the leaks happened on the European side of the pipeline, not on the Russian side.
What effects will the leak have?
There has been a disturbance about 1 km around the biggest gas leak. Agencies have issued warnings for ships to stay well away from the area.
Though neither pipeline is in operation they contain methane. Methane is a hazardous air pollutant, a greenhouse gas and contributes to ground level ozone. The senior scientist at the nonprofit Clean Air Task Force David McCabe said that these leaks could lead to a disastrous impact on the climate. Methane has 80 times the global warming capacity of carbon dioxide.
Investigations are being carried out. Norway and Denmark have said that they are tightening their maritime security.
Last week, gas prices rose by as much as 40% within a day. This was the highest price rise in more than 20 years. Prices are expected to rise further as supply goes short. On the other side of the globe, US is a shale gas producer.
Norway and Denmark have both increased sea patrolling, especially in the areas where oil and gas transport happens.
Image: Featured Image shared by the Danish Armed Forces, Map from The Sun