Putin: Russia is ready to continue supplying gas to Europe through the remaining branch of Nord Stream 2
Russian president Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to supply Europe with additional volumes of gas through the remaining branch of Nord Stream 2.
According to him, it is possible to repair the damaged gas pipelines, but only in case of their further economically justified operation.
"And, of course, ensuring the safety of the route is a priority," Putin said at the forum "Russian Energy Week".
"If we and the Europeans come to a common decision to supply gas through the remaining branch of Nord Stream 2 – and one branch, apparently, survived, although, unfortunately, we are not allowed to inspect the branch. The pressure there remains, although it may be damaged. Its capacity is 27.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year, which is about 8% of all gas imports to Europe. Russia is ready to start these deliveries, the ball is in the court of the European Union. If they want to, let them just open the tap and that's it," Putin said.
Putin also claimed that Russia could move the unused volume of gas to the Black Sea region, creating the largest gas hub in Turkey.
In turn, the head of the Russian gas company Gazprom, Alexei Miller, said that, he believes, Europe will experience an abnormally cold winter this year.
"During peaks of cold weather, European cities can freeze in one week," Miller said.
The head of Gazprom claims that there are no guarantees that Europe will survive the winter with current reserves in storage facilities. In fact, EU gas storage facilities are expected to be at 90% capacity by the beginning of the winter.
The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, said that Putin is counting on the fact that the difficulties of the winter will exacerbate the fatigue of the Western world from the war in Ukraine.