Russia Hopes for EU Assistance in the Situation around Nord Stream 2

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak assures that Nord Stream 2 is a purely economic project. In the context of the USA sanctions, Moscow counts on the European Union support. Moscow hopes that, with the support of European partners, it will be possible to solve the situation around the construction of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany suspended due to the USA sanctions against contracting companies. This was stated by the Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak. “We are sure that in cooperation with European countries, the European Union, we will solve this problem and find a compromise,” Interfax quoted Kozak on Wednesday, December 25. According to the Deputy Head of the Russian government, “the key countries of the European Union” are interested in “getting energy security at the required level,” and “everyone understands that this is an economic project.” The cost of raw materials that will be delivered via this pipeline will be 30 percent less than the price of US liquefied natural gas, Dmitry Kozak claims. The USA predicts growing of EU dependence on the Russian gas Washington, in turn, talks about a possible increase in the EU’s dependence on Russian supplies. The US Department of Energy released a forecast in September that gas production in Russia will increase by 40 percent by 2050, up to 34 trillion cubic feet (962 billion cubic meters), whist most of the raw materials will be exported to Europe and Asia. In December, the United States imposed sanctions on contractors for the construction of the Nord Stream 2 and Turkish Stream gas pipelines. As a result, the Swiss company Allseas Group, the Nord Stream 2 pipelayer, suspended operations and removed its vessels from the construction zone. To t complete the pipeline, it remains to lay 160 km of pipes. Meanwhile, according to the Kommersant newspaper, Gazprom is able to complete the Nord Stream 2 project on its own: it has its own Akademik Cherskiy pipe layer, but it is currently in the Nakhodka harbor and will be able to arrive in the Baltic Sea not earlier than in a month.