US extends sanctions to include firms equipping N Stream-2 ships

WASHINGTON, Oct 20 (PRIME) -- The U.S. sanctions against Russia's Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline have been extended to include companies that provide services of upgrading or installment of equipment on the ships laying the pipeline, according to a statement seen by PRIME on Tuesday on the website of the U.S. State Department.

According to Bloomberg, Russian pipe laying vessel Akademik Chersky must be reequipped to finish the project. The vessel was near Kaliningrad, and several supply ships approached it.

The Nord Stream-2 project envisages construction of two lines of a natural gas pipeline with an annual capacity of up to 55 billion cubic meters, running from the Russian shore to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Russian gas giant Gazprom is implementing the project together with Germany’s E.ON and BASF, Royal Dutch Shell, Austria’s OMV, and France’s Engie.

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