Three mines had 800mln cubic meters of gas amid Nord Stream incident

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
1 Oct 2022 10:16
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Gazprom has begun to look for solutions to restore the Nord Stream system's efficiency, but it is impossible to say how long it will take at this time.

Pipes at the landfall facilities of the 'Nord Stream 1' gas pipeline pictured in Lubmin, Germany, March 8, 2022 (Reuters)

The three mines held approximately 800 million cubic meters of gas at the time of the explosions that shut down the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, according to Gazprom representative Sergey Kurplyanov.

"According to available estimates, the three mines contained about 800 million cubic meters of gas at the time of the incident," Kurplyanov said during a UN Security Council meeting on Friday.

That amount is equivalent to Denmark's gas consumption over the course of three months, he added.

On Monday, two pipelines were attacked simultaneously, causing a drop in pressure and leaks into the Baltic Sea. Authorities in Sweden and Denmark reported hearing several explosions, and the general consensus is that the incidents were the result of sabotage.

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office said on Wednesday that the pipeline explosions are being investigated as acts of international terrorism.

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Friday that the US and its allies are no longer satisfied with imposing sanctions on Russia and have begun to demolish the pan-European energy infrastructure.

The Nord Stream gas pipelines were damaged by two explosions, according to Danish officials during a NATO conference, each with the force of around 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms) of TNT, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing persons familiar with the case.

Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines were struck in Danish waters near the island of Bornholm. The Swedish and Danish governments announced the discovery of two gas leaks caused by submarine explosions, with the general agreement being that the occurrence was the result of sabotage.

The Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev stated at a meeting of the heads of intelligence agencies of the CIS countries, after the fourth explosion hit the Nord Stream pipelines, that the United States is the main beneficiary of the emergency situation.

"Literally from the first minutes after reports of explosions on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, the West launched an active campaign to find those responsible. However, it is obvious that the main beneficiary, primarily economic, is the United States," Patrushev said.