The return to Russia of a Siemens turbine is “impossible” because of the sanctions against Moscow, said the Russian gas giant Gazprom, Wednesday August 3. “The sanctions regimes in Canada, the European Union and the United Kingdom, as well as the inconsistencies of the current situation regarding Siemens’ contractual obligations, make delivery impossible”the group said in a short message (in Russian).
These statements are likely to heighten the concern of European countries, which suspect Moscow of seeking a pretext to delay the return of this turbine and further reduce its gas deliveries, in the context of tensions around Ukraine.
The German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also visited the site of the industrialist Siemens Energy, in Mulheim an der Ruhrwhere this turbine is located. “There is no reason that would prevent the delivery to take place”, did he declare. Before adding that Moscow should simply “provide the necessary customs information for its transport to Russia”. The Russian operator Gazprom has repeatedly accused Siemens Energy of not having sent the necessary documents to restart the turbine.
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Gazprom says the equipment, which was returned to Germany after being repaired in Canada, is essential to ensure the smooth operation of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which supplies Europe. Russia reduced the volume of its deliveries in June and July, saying that the pipeline could not function normally without it. Westerners doubt it, and accuse Moscow of using the energy weapon in retaliation for the sanctions adopted after the offensive against Ukraine.
The Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, with a daily capacity of 167 million cubic meters according to Gazprom, connects Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea. This tube is strategic for the gas supplies of Europeans, especially the Germans, very dependent on Russian energy resources.