Russia sees Nord Stream 2 certification dragging on till summer

MOSCOW, Jan 10 (PRIME) -- Certification of the Russian natural gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 may drag on until the summer of 2022, and the U.S. may slap new sanctions against it, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin told PRIME on January 3.

“The procedure is created in such a way that it doesn’t just prolong (certification), but to consider it in the first instance, then in the second, which can drag on for months … It can last until the summer,” he said, adding that the U.S. may make the process more difficult.

“The American hammer can come after that. We may suppose that the Americans would tell the Germans not to buy a gram of Russian gas through the pipeline. They may certify the pipeline, or they may not certify it. They can apply anything to it. There are plots at every step,” he said.

The 55 billion cubic meter Nord Stream 2 pipeline was built in September 2021. Both strings were filled with technical gas and the pipeline is ready for operation. Its certification by the German Federal Network Agency was halted in November because the regulator deemed it necessary for the operator to create a subsidiary in Germany and reapply for certification as an operator on its behalf as required by the European law.

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