Russia will halt natural gas supplies to Europe for three days at the end of the month via its main pipeline into the region, state energy giant Gazprom said earlier this month, piling pressure on the region as it seeks to refuel ahead of winter.
The unscheduled maintenance on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which runs under the Baltic Sea to Germany, deepens an energy standoff between Moscow and Brussels which has already helped send inflation surging in the region and raised the risk of rationing and recession.
Gazprom said the shutdown was because the pipeline’s only remaining compressor requires maintenance. Gas flows via other pipeline routes also have fallen since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
On the eve of the scheduled maintenance, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany was a “strong country” and that the government’s job was “to ensure that our country is well prepared, even for stormy times. I am confident that we will succeed.”
(Reuters)
