Russia begins construction of Nord Stream- 2 in the Gulf of Finland
On Wednesday, September 5, Russia started construction of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline in the Finnish waters of the Gulf of Finland reported the press service of Nord Stream 2 AG.
The Vessel Solitaire is carrying out the work. Pipes are welded together on the board of the vessel, after which the pipeline is lowered to the seabed. Russia plans to conduct the laying of pipes round the clock.
The pipe layer ship will first lay part of the pipeline in the Finnish exclusive economic zone and then move to another site. Later this year, the Solitaire will start laying pipes in the waters of Russia.
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline will pass through the Baltic Sea, connecting suppliers in Russia with consumers in Europe. Its length will be more than 1.2 thousand km. The capacity will be 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year. The estimated cost of the project is almost 10 billion euros. The consortium members are Gazprom, Engie, OMV, Shell, BASF and Uniper.
Nord Stream 2 has received complete sets of permits for the construction and operation of the gas pipeline in Germany, Finland and Sweden. On June 7, the Russian Ministry of Construction, Housing and Utilities and Housing issued a permit to build a Russian section of the gas pipeline.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko previously called the Nord Stream 2 a political bribe to remain loyal to Russia.