Nord Stream gas supplies to the EU halted indefinitely – Gazprom

Russian energy giant Gazprom announced on Friday that it would indefinitely stop natural gas supplies to the EU via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline due to technical disruptions. The pipeline was scheduled to return to service on September 3 following repairs to its only operational turbine.

According to the company, it received a warning from Russia’s industrial regulator Rostekhnadzor about the turbine failure. The problems were reportedly discovered during maintenance work, and the pipeline will not be able to operate without proper repairs, according to Gazprom.

The Russian company said it had informed German manufacturer Siemens about the turbine failure and the need for an overhaul.

Repairs to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline were originally scheduled from August 31 to September 3, resulting in a complete disruption to gas flows to the EU.

Since July, the Nord Stream 1 pipeline has been operating at reduced capacity due to the shutdown of several gas turbines. Some were sent to Montreal for repairs and were stuck there due to Canada’s sanctions against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine. At Germany’s request, Ottawa announced an exemption for the turbines in July and returned one turbine, but Gazprom refused acceptance, citing irregularities in the documentation.

Gazprom cites defective or delayed equipment as the main reason for the 80 percent reduction in deliveries via the pipeline. The Kremlin said this week only sanctions are preventing Nord Stream 1 from operating at full capacity. Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller also warned that the sanctions could prevent Siemens Energy from performing regular maintenance work on the pipeline’s equipment.

Meanwhile, the newly built Nord Stream 2 pipeline is standing still as Germany has refused to certify it for operation.