Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday supplied to renew fuel provides to Europe via the intact a part of the Nord Stream 2 fuel pipeline.
“The ball is in the EU’s court. If they want to, then the taps can be turned on and that’s it,” he mentioned in a speech at an vitality discussion board in Moscow.
Germany, nonetheless, mentioned it will not take Russian fuel by way of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that has turn out to be a flashpoint within the Ukraine disaster.
Asked if Berlin would rule out the usage of Nord Stream 2, German authorities spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann mentioned, “Yes.”
“Independently of the possible sabotage of the two pipelines, we have seen that Russia is no longer a reliable energy supplier, and that even before the damage to Nord Stream 1 there was no longer any gas flowing,” Hoffmann instructed reporters.
Massive quantities of fuel had been launched into the Baltic Sea after each hyperlinks of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline and one of many two hyperlinks of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline had been ruptured on September 26.
Russia had already halted fuel deliveries via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline in early September, citing technical issues. Nord Stream 2 by no means grew to become operational as Germany halted its approval after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Putin mentioned it was potential to restore the pipelines however that Russia and Europe ought to resolve their destiny.
Nord Stream repairs may take a yr
The Russian invasion prompted European consumers to begin the method of weaning themselves off Russian oil and fuel and search for different suppliers.
Speaking on the similar discussion board as Putin, Alexei Miller, head of Russian vitality firm Gazprom, mentioned repairs to the broken Nord Stream pipelines would take at the very least a yr.
He added there was “no guarantee” that Europe would survive winter primarily based on its present fuel storage capability.
Germany’s fuel storage amenities are almost 95% full, and officers say the nation is well-placed to get via the winter, although efforts to avoid wasting fuel might be mandatory.
Putin moots main fuel hub in Turkey
Ahead of a gathering along with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Putin proposed the creation of an vitality hub in Turkey.
“We could move the lost volumes from the Nord Streams along the bottom of the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea region and thus make the main routes for the supply of our fuel, our natural gas to Europe through Turkey, creating the largest gas hub for Europe in Turkey,” he mentioned.
Russia is the world’s second-largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia and the highest pure fuel exporter.