Amid Russia-Ukraine war Europe fears Nord stream might not restart
Russia is second in the world for crude oil production and first for natural gas production. Putin is protected by Europe’s energy reliance on Russia during the nord stream 1 conflict with Ukraine. The world’s longest subsea pipeline, Nord Stream 1, originates in Vyborg, Russia and travels through the ocean to Greifswald, Germany. It is 1,222 kilometers long.
According to Russia, the pipeline stopped working on July 11 and won’t resume until July 21. Europe receives 55 billion cubic meters of gas every year from the pipeline. During Europe’s long, cold winters, gas is used to generate electricity and heat homes, workplaces, and factories.
However, given the current state of the conflict and the fact that Moscow had reduced the pipeline’s capacity by 40% in June, the abrupt announcement of an annual maintenance to Europe appears to be a political stunt. The European Commission is preparing for all possible outcomes, including the potential that exports would not resume on Thursday, when pipeline maintenance is scheduled to end.
In recent years, the majority of European nations have reduced their dependency on Russian gas. Gas that was headed first for Slovakia, then for Austria and Italy was primarily transported through the Ukraine in 2021. The EU has stated that it wants to reduce its dependency on Russian gas by two-thirds this year and eliminate it “far before 2030.”
Alternatives of Europe that might work
Germany, Europe’s largest gas consumer, could import gas from the UK, Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands. After the Ukraine conflict, Germany did put a pause to certification of Russia’s new Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Transatlantic partners announced last week that the US will try to deliver 15 billion cubic meters of LNG to EU this year. Analysts predict that most of any additional U.S. gas sent to Europe will be diverted from other exports.
Several European nations want to increase imports and storage, but LNG terminals are full. Europe has tried to reduce its reliance on coal to meet its climate goals, but several coal facilities have restarted due to rising gas prices.
