The pipes of the ground facilities of the “Nord Stream 1” gas pipeline are shown in Lubmin, Germany, on March 8, 2022.
Hannibal Hanschke | Reuters
The operator of Nord Stream 1, a key pipeline running from Russia to Germany, said Thursday it was in the process of resuming flows to Europe.
There had been concerns across the region that there could be a complete shutdown of gas supply through the pipeline after it closed earlier this month for maintenance. Flows were to be restored on Thursday after the completion of the works.
Data from the Nord Stream operator’s website showed that flows increased from zero to 29,284,591 kWh / h for the 06: 00-07: 00 Central European time on Thursday. On July 10, the last day of operations before the start of maintenance work, the flows were at approximately the same level, just above 29,000,000 kWh / h.
It is likely to be a welcome relief for European officials who have been struggling to find alternative suppliers to Russian gas.
Germany, and the EU in general, have been dependent on Russian fossil fuels for years and there has been a widespread attempt to reverse it following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Since March, the EU has been negotiating new gas agreements with the United States and Azerbaijan, and has held talks with Israel and Qatar.
Speaking on Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Russia was blackmailing Europe and using energy as a weapon. Russia has repeatedly denied that it is arming fossil fuel supplies and the Kremlin was not immediately available for comment when CNBC was contacted on Thursday.
Despite the news that flows have resumed, the EU will continue to move forward with contingency plans in the event of a complete shutdown of gas supply from Russia. The commission has told all 27 EU countries to reduce their gas consumption by 15% by March, in an effort to save energy.
Von der Leyen has said the Kremlin is likely to move forward with a total cut in gas supplies to Europe.
This is breaking news and will be updated shortly.