Germany has no plans to dismantle Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline
Germany has no plans to dismantle the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, confirmed Bundestag, the German parliament in a response dated October 26, 2022. The response came in reply to a question by a far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) lawmaker.
“The Nord Stream 2 pipeline did not go into operation, so the federal government cannot work towards its termination. There are currently no plans to dismantle the line, particularly the part of the line in German territorial waters,” Germany’s Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Change said.
Russia accounted for a whopping 55 percent of Germany’s gas imports in 2021, a level that declined to 26 percent by June 2022, in part due to the reduced flow of gas from Russia in the previously operational Nord Stream 1 pipeline.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz-led country has pledged to replace all Russian energy imports as soon as mid-2024.
€46 billion: The cost of replacing Russian gas for Germany
Germany faces the prospect of facing a €46 billion ($45.4 billion) hit for replacing Russian gas with other alternatives, according to a response by Germany’s Economic Affairs ministry in the parliament. “The amount of the (expected) costs associated with the substitution of Russian gas depends largely on the development of gas prices. Of particular importance in this connection are the volatile gas prices on the spot market, where parts of the required quantities have to be procured. Against this background, the federal government currently estimates the costs at around 46 billion euros,” it said.
The German economic ministry said that the share of Russian gas will be substituted by higher deliveries from Norway and increasing Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) imports from other countries in Europe. The ministry did not specify the names of other countries.
Russia curtailed gas supplies to Germany and other European nations via Nord Stream 1 pipeline starting June 2022. On September 29, amid intensifying warfare between Russia and Ukraine, the former closed down Nord Stream 1 pipeline indefinitely after a number of leaks were found in it and the parallel pipeline Nord Stream 2.
