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Nord Stream 2 starts filling second pipe with natural gas

On Friday, the gas pipe operator Nord Stream 2 AG said that it started filling its second pipe with natural gas, stepping up preparations to launch the project that sparked global political tensions and is yet to be approved by one of the two partnering countries, namely Germany.

“Like the first string (pipe), the second string will be gradually filled with gas to build the required inventory and pressure,” the Swiss-based company said. Russia completed construction of the dual pipeline in September with the first pipe filled up with gas in October.

Pre-commissioning activities on the second pipe were completed successfully to assure its integrity, the company added.

However, it is yet to obtain regulatory approval from Germany and the European Union, amid political tensions over a build up of Russian troops on the Ukraine border.

On Thursday, Germany’s energy regulator said that full certification of the project would not come in the first half of 2022. In turn Russia called the delay “political”.

Pavel Zavalny, head of the energy committee in Russia’s lower house of parliament, said on Friday that gas might start flowing via Nord Stream 2 to Germany as soon as January, which was denied by Berlin.

The Nord Stream 2 pipes, both 1,234-km long, have a combined annual capacity of 55 billion cubic meters, the same as the current Nord Stream, which lies almost in parallel on the bed of the Baltic Sea.

The launch of the project, designed to bypass Moscow’s political foe Ukraine, would double Russia’s pipeline capacity for gas exports in the Baltic.

Some experts and politicians have accused Russia of deliberately undersupplying Europe to win approval to begin flows through Nord Stream 2, contributing to gas prices spikes across the continent.

Russian gas exporter Gazprom said that it is meeting its contractual obligations to its European customers, while its key clients have said they haven’t asked the company for more deliveries.

The United States, as well as some European countries including Ukraine and Poland, have protested against the pipeline, which would deprive Kyiv of transit fees as well as increase Moscow’s leverage over Europe.

Russia claims that the project is purely commercial.

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