Sweden Warned of Leaks in the Nord Stream 1 Pipeline

The Swedish Maritime Administration on Tuesday warned of two leaks in the Russian Nord Stream 1 pipeline in Swedish and Danish waters, shortly after a leak was discovered in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

‒ There are two leaks in Nord Stream 1,  one in Swedish and one in Danish economic zones. They are very close to each other ‒ said a spokesperson for the Swedish Maritime Administration (SMA).

The leak is located northeast of the Danish island of Bornholm, the spokesperson said, and the cause is unknown.

‒ We are monitoring the situation further to ensure that no ships approach too close to that area ‒ said another spokesperson for the SMA.

On Monday, Danish authorities requested ships to stay clear of a radius of five nautical miles southeast of Bornholm following a gas leak from the inactive Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

The pressure in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline which was supposed to double the supply of Russian gas to Germany, suddenly dropped from 105 to seven bars on the night from Sunday to Monday, a spokesperson for the operator stated on Monday.

Gazprom stated that inquiries about the incident should be directed to the operator.

The Nord Stream 2 pipeline was intended to transport Russian gas through the Baltic Sea to Germany and was completed at the end of last year. The U.S. opposed it, claiming it would increase Europe’s dependence on Russian gas. Ukraine also criticized it, complaining that it would lose transit revenue from Russian gas.

Germany has put it on hold due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and is trying to find new sources of gas supply. At the moment when German Chancellor Olaf Scholz blocked it due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 300 million cubic meters of gas were waiting for delivery in the pipeline, Reuters reports.

The Baltic pipeline, a new underwater pipeline that delivers Norwegian gas to Poland with an annual capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per day, is set to be officially opened on Tuesday.