Nord Stream gas leak investigation

31 Mar, 18:50

German authorities do not plan to launch Russian gas via surviving Nord Stream 2 string

As the newspaper indicated, secret talks about possibly resuming Russian gas flows to Germany have been underway in Switzerland for several weeks

BERLIN, March 31. /TASS/. The German government has no intention of launching Russian gas through the surviving string of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a representative from the German Ministry of Economy told a briefing.

"There are no discussions on this matter," she said, answering a relevant question.

According to her, the German authorities allegedly do not see a reason to return to Russian gas supplies.

On March 4, the Bild newspaper reported citing sources that the German Cabinet is assessing options for how to prevent the commissioning of Nord Stream 2 in the event that Russia and the United States come to some agreement on gas.

As the newspaper indicated, secret talks about possibly resuming Russian gas flows to Germany have been underway in Switzerland for several weeks. According to the publication, Nord Stream 2 is at the center of these discussions.

As the newspaper wrote, US Presidential Envoy for Special Assignments Richard Grenell has made several unofficial trips to Switzerland to discuss the deal. The headquarters of the Nord Stream 2 operator, the Nord Stream 2 AG company, is located in Steinhausen (canton of Zug). According to Bild, Grenell's trips are related to a "gas deal" between the US and Russia.

On March 14, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told Reuters that Russia does not expect a quick solution to the issue of resuming Russian gas exports to Europe via Nord Stream.

The construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline was completed on September 10, 2021. The gas pipeline consists of two strings with a total capacity of 55 billion cubic meters per year, which run from the coast of Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany. On September 26, 2022, unprecedented destruction was recorded on three strings of Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2. As a result, only one string of the latter gas pipeline survived. The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation initiated a case on an act of international terrorism. It is currently impossible to determine the time frame for restoring the gas pipelines' operability.

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Nord Stream gas leak investigation

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