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Natural Gas Pipeline News

26 Sep 2022

Gas from Russia's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Leaks into Baltic Sea

© sakramir / Adobe Stock

The Danish authorities on Monday asked ships to steer clear of a five nautical mile radius off the island of Bornholm after a gas leak overnight from the defunct Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 pipeline drained into the Baltic Sea.The German government said it was in contact with the Danish authorities and working with local law enforcement to find out what caused pressure in the pipeline to plummet suddenly. Denmark's energy ministry declined to comment.The pipeline has been one…

09 Sep 2022

Natgas Pipeline Explodes in Lake Lery, Louisiana

The U.S. Coast Guard said on Thursday that it was responding to a natural gas pipeline explosion at Lake Lery, La., and there have been no reports of injuries, casualties or pollution at this time.The Coast Guard received a report of a large fire at Lake Lery, it said in a release."The pipeline has been secured.

14 Jan 2022

Senator Cruz's Nord Stream 2 Sanctions Bill Fails in U.S. Senate

Credit:  Николай Батаев
/AdobeStock

The U.S. Senate on Thursday failed to pass a bill to slap sanctions on Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline sponsored by Republican Senator Ted Cruz, a day after Democrats unveiled their own legislation.The tally was 55 in favor and 44 against the bill that needed 60 votes to pass, a major hurdle in the 50-50 Senate. The vote spanned nearly seven hours as Majority Leader Chuck Schumer considered options on voting rights legislation.Senator Robert Menendez won the support of many of his fellow Democrats, including President Joe Biden, for an alternative bill he introduced on Wednesday.

13 Jan 2022

U.S. Senate Set to Vote on Cruz's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Sanctions Bill

Credit: Nord Stream 2

The U.S. Senate will vote on Thursday on a bill being pushed by Republican Ted Cruz to slap sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline in Europe, although it is not expected to garner enough support to pass.The bill is scheduled for a vote at around 2:45 p.m. ET (1945 GMT), according to Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff.Cruz struck a deal with Democrats last month to get a vote before Jan. 14 on the Russia-to-Germany natural gas pipeline in exchange for lifting his hold on dozens of Democratic President Joe Biden's ambassador nominations.Under the deal…

08 Dec 2021

U.S. Officials: Nord Stream 2 Pipeline to be Shut Down if Russia Invades Ukraine

Credit: Nord Stream 2

U.S. officials have told members of Congress they have an understanding with Germany about shutting down the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline if Russia invades Ukraine, a senior congressional aide told Reuters on Tuesday.The White House said Germany had made commitments about the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that runs from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea in the event of aggressive acts by Russia.U.S. President Joe Biden told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday the West…

09 Nov 2021

U.S. Republicans in Push to Sanction Nord Stream 2 Gas Pipeline

File Photo: A vessel connecting pipe sections above water at Nord Stream 2 project in 2019 - Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt

A group of U.S. Senate Republicans said on Monday they had introduced legislation that would impose mandatory sanctions on Nord Stream 2, a Russian-backed natural gas pipeline that opponents believe would be harmful to U.S. allies in Europe.The six lawmakers, led by Senator Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, offered the measure as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, a sweeping defense policy bill that is one of…

16 Jul 2021

Biden, Merkel Fail to Settle Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Dispute

File photo: President Joe Biden meets for a brief pull-aside meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during the G7 Summit at the Carbis Bay Hotel and Estate on Saturday, June 12, 2021, in St. Ives, Cornwall, England. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel failed on Thursday to settle their dispute over Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline but said they agreed that Moscow must not be allowed to use energy as a weapon to coerce its neighbors."Good friends can disagree," Biden told reporters after two meetings with Merkel at the White House, adding that both leaders had asked their teams to look at practical measures they could take together if Russia's actions posed a…

01 Apr 2021

Merkel Ally Calls for Moratorium on Nord Stream 2 Construction

File photo: © Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt

Germany's coordinator for transatlantic relations called on Wednesday for a moratorium on the construction of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Europe, breaking ranks with many in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government.The United States is opposed to the project, saying it increases Europe's reliance on Russian energy and U.S. President Joe Biden is dangling the threat of sanctions."The project is a serious obstacle for a new start in transatlantic relations…

29 Mar 2021

U.S. State Secretary: Completing Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Ultimately up to Builders

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (File Photo: State.gov)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that it was ultimately up to those building the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline whether to complete it despite opposition from Washington.On Wednesday, Blinken said he had told his German counterpart that U.S. sanctions against the pipeline from Russia to Germany were a real possibility and there was "no ambiguity" in American opposition to its construction.Because the pipeline would run from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea…

19 Mar 2021

U.S. Tells Firms Building Nord Stream 2 Pipeline to 'Immediately' Stop Work or Risk Sanctions

File photo: © Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt

The U.S. State Department is tracking efforts to complete Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline and evaluating information on entities that appear to be involved, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday."Any entity involved in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline risks U.S. sanctions and should immediately abandon work on the pipeline," Blinken said in a statement, adding the Biden administration is committed to complying with 2019 and 2020 legislation with regards to the pipeline and sanctions.Shortly after Blinken's statement…

08 Mar 2021

USA: Senator Cruz Puts Hold On Biden's CIA Pick over Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

Senator Ted Cruz (File Photo) Credit: Gage Skidmore - CC BY-SA 2.0

Republican Senator Ted Cruz put a hold late on Friday on President Joe Biden's pick to lead the Central Intelligence Agency to pressure the administration to put tough sanctions on Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline project.The Senate Intelligence Committee last week backed William Burns, a former ambassador to Russia, by a unanimous vote. Burns has been confirmed by the Senate for five previous jobs over 33 years and is expected to eventually be approved by the full…

25 Feb 2021

Report: Baker Hughes, 17 Other Firms Quit Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Project to Avoid Sanctions

Baker Hughes Co and AXA Group and 16 other companies recently quit work on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline and will not be sanctioned, according to a document the Biden administration sent to Congress last week which was seen by Reuters.Russian energy company Gazprom and its western partners are racing to build the pipeline to take Russian gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea, and hope to finish it this year. President Joe Biden believes the pipeline is a “bad deal” for Europe.Many U.S. lawmakers and officials say the pipeline would increase Russia’s political and economic leverage over Europe. The $11 billion pipeline, which would double the capacity of its existing duct, would bypass Ukraine through which Russia has sent gas to Europe for decades.

22 Feb 2021

U.S. Designates Already Sanctioned Russian Ship as Helping to Build Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

The Biden administration on Friday identified a Russian ship and a company it believes are helping to build the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, but the entities had already been sanctioned by the Trump administration and the project's opponents in Congress said the move would do little to halt work on it.The State Department said in a report to Congress that the Russian ship, the Fortuna, and its owner, KVT-RUS, had been designated, a process that starts new sanctions, two lawmakers said.Both entities had been sanctioned by former President Donald Trump on his last full day in office last month for helping to build the natural gas pipeline to bring Russian gas to Europe via Germany."Simply put…

19 Feb 2021

U.S. to Unveil Nord Stream 2 Report. Sanctions May Take Time

Route map of Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines - Credit: Gazprom

The Biden administration is expected to name as early as Friday the companies it believes are helping build Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline, five sources said, a move that could eventually prompt sanctions on the nearly-completed project.The State Department report to Congress, which may come on Friday, is expected to list companies the administration believes are helping to complete the natural gas pipeline that Russia's state energy company Gazprom says is more than 90% complete.Sanctions law that went into effect on Jan.

18 Feb 2021

U.S. Lawmakers ask Blinken for Briefing on Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

Several U.S. Representatives on Wednesday raised pressure on the State Department to share plans on potential sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline Russia is racing to finish to take fuel to Europe."If completed, Nord Stream 2 would enable the Putin regime to further weaponize Russia's energy resources to exert political pressure throughout Europe," two Republicans including Michael McCaul, and two Democrats including Marcy Kaptur, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.U.S. representatives and senators have said that the Biden administration has missed a deadline of Feb. 16 to issue Congress a report required by recently passed law on companies helping Russia's state energy company Gazprom lay pipeline…

07 Feb 2021

Pipe Laying for Nord Stream 2 Restarts in Danish Waters

File photo: © Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt

The consortium behind the Russia-led Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline has resumed laying pipes in the waters of Denmark, it said on Saturday, despite mounting pressure on the project from Washington.Construction of the link, which would double the capacity of the existing Nord Stream pipeline to 110 billion cubic meters of gas per year, was suspended in December 2019 due to the threat of sanctions from Washington.However the German government has stood by the project and late in December a vessel called the Fortuna…

27 Jan 2021

Biden Sees Nord Stream 2 Pipeline as 'Bad deal' for Europe

Joe Biden - Credit. Gage Skidmore/Flickr - CC BY-SA 2.0

President Joe Biden believes the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline is a "bad deal for Europe" and his administration will be reviewing restrictions on the project included in a bill that passed during the Trump administration, the White House said on Tuesday.The restrictions on the undersea pipeline project were included in the annual defense policy bill that passed on Jan. 1. Sanctions in the measure apply to any companies helping Gazprom, the Russian state energy company leading the project…

24 Dec 2020

U.S. Readying Fresh Round of Sanctions Against Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

The United States is urging European allies and private companies to halt work that could help build the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline and is preparing wider sanctions on the Russian project in coming weeks, senior Trump administration officials said on Wednesday.The outgoing Trump administration is readying a fresh round of congressionally mandated sanctions “in the very near future” that it believes could deal a fatal blow to the Russia-to-Germany project led by state gas company Gazprom, three officials said.“We’ve been getting body blow on body blow to this, and now we’re in the process of driving a stake through the project heart…

31 Jan 2020

Partners to Expand Pakistan LNG Inport Terminal

(File photo: Excelerate Energy)

Excelerate Energy announced it has agreed with partner Engro Elengy Terminal Ltd. (EETL) to expand the EETL liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal in Port Qasim, Pakistan.Under the heads of agreement (HOA), Excelerate will exchange its existing floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Exquisite with a newbuild FSRU, Hull 2477, which is currently under construction at South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard and due to be delivered in April 2020.

17 Jun 2020

Nord Stream 2 Seeks Updated Permit to Complete Pipeline in Danish Waters

The Nord Stream 2 has requested a permit allowing it to use pipe-laying vessels with anchors to complete the final roughly 120-kilometer stretch of pipeline in Danish waters, Denmark's energy agency (DEA) said on Tuesday.Work on the project stopped in December as pipe-laying firm Swiss-Dutch Allseas suspended work due to U.S. sanctions targeting companies providing vessels laying Nord Stream 2 pipes.The DEA did not say how the work would proceed in the face of a new risk of sanctions but its decision would be "purely administrative" and in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.The Trump administration opposes the project on the grounds it would strengthen Russia's economic grip over Europe.This month, U.S.

10 Mar 2020

Bulgargaz to Book Capacity at Greek LNG Terminal

© evening_tao / Adobe Stock

Bulgaria's state-owned gas company Bulgargaz will reserve 500 million cubic gas annually for 10 years at the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal now being built in northern Greece, the government said on Tuesday.Greek natural gas company Gastrade, which handles the project near the city of Alexandoupolis, has extended the deadline for companies to file binding bids to reserve capacity to March 20.The LNG terminal, in which Bulgaria will have a 20% stake, seeks to supply gas to southeast Europe via a natural gas pipeline that will cross through Greece…

21 Aug 2020

Four Missing, Six Injured After Dredge Strikes a Pipeline in Corpus Christi

Four people are missing and six have been hospitalized for injuries caused by a pipeline explosion in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel on Friday, officials said.The explosion and subsequent fire were reported at about 8 a.m. local time near Nueces Bay in the northern part of the city after a dredge struck a pipeline in the water. The dredge, Waymon L Boyd owned by Houston-based Orion Marine Group, was working on a private project, not the channel deepening work currently underway at the port.The U.S.

12 Nov 2020

Sanctions on Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Included in Annual U.S. Defense Bill

Sanctions that could hinder one of Moscow's most important projects in Europe, the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, have been included in the annual U.S. defense policy bill, two congressional aides said on Wednesday.The sanctions in the compromise National Defense Authorization Act between lawmakers in the House and Senate would penalize companies facilitating the construction of the pipeline, including ships helping operations to lay pipelines or moving rock formations on the sea bed.The sanctions also target companies providing insurance or secondary insurance for its construction and certification for the pipeline in Denmark.