Russia suspected of blowing up Balticconnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia
Norwegian seismologists detected a possible explosion in the Baltic Sea during the night of October 7-8 at 01:20 local time (which coincides with Moscow time). The incident is said to have occurred near the Balticconnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia, according to a statement from NORSAR (the Norwegian-US foundation for the detection of earthquakes and nuclear explosions).
The magnitude of the seismic event is estimated to be 1, which is much lower than the explosion that occurred on the Nord Stream gas pipeline in September 2022, according to NORSAR.
It is noted that the possible explosion was detected 20 km north of the Estonian city of Paldiski.
The Finnish authorities have reason to suspect that the leak in Balticconnector may have been caused by "external actions."
The Finnish newspaper Iltalehti reported, citing sources in the government and Defense Forces, that Russia is among the suspects since its vessels have been observed near wind farms and underwater power cables.
Balticconnector is a gas pipeline between the city of Inkoo in Finland and the Estonian city of Paldiski. The offshore section runs along the bottom of the Baltic Sea for nearly 80 km, while the onshore portions are 55 km in Estonia and 21 km in Finland. It provides Finland with access to an underground gas storage facility in Incukalns, Latvia, with a capacity of up to 2.6 billion cubic meters per year.