Out of service due to the war in Ukraine, the Nord Stream gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany under the Baltic Sea were both affected by spectacular leaks preceded by underwater explosions, suggesting sabotage, according to the Denmark and Sweden.
The three large leaks detected since Monday off the Danish island of Bornholm, between southern Sweden and Poland, are visible on the surface in the form of bubbling ranging from 200 meters to one kilometer in diameter, announced the Danish army on Tuesday, with supporting images.
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline had suffered a sharp drop in pressure on Monday, followed a few hours later by Nord Stream 1, which follows the route under the Baltic.
“The clear opinion of the authorities is that these are deliberate acts. We are not talking about an accident, ”Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said at a press conference on Tuesday evening.
“Detonations took place and it is probably a question of sabotage”, added, too, the Swedish Prime Minister, Magdalena Andersson.
Like Denmark, Sweden does not consider this an act of aggression against it, as the incidents took place outside territorial waters, in exclusive economic zones, the government said.
According to Copenhagen, the leaks should last “at least a week”, until the large quantities of gas are released from the two works.
The Swedish seismic institute recorded two underwater explosions, “most likely due to detonations”, before the incident, like its Norwegian and Danish equivalents.
arm wrestling
Objects of geopolitical arm wrestling in recent months, the two pipelines operated by a consortium dependent on the Russian giant Gazprom are not operational because of the consequences of the war in Ukraine. But both were still full of gas.
The Kremlin, towards which many eyes were turned, said it was “extremely concerned”, considering that “no” hypothesis should be excluded, including that of sabotage.
In kyiv, the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, Mykhaïlo Podoliak, denounced “a planned terrorist attack” by Moscow, without providing evidence.
The Polish Prime Minister, who inaugurated a gas pipeline linking Norway to Poland on Tuesday, also mentioned Russian involvement, without directly targeting Moscow.
“We are not excluding any scenario, but we are not going to speculate on the motives or the actors” who may be involved, explained Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde.
“There is no information yet telling us anything about those responsible,” said Mr.me Fredriksen.
On the American side, Washington refused to “confirm” an act of sabotage.
The operator of the pipelines, the Nord Stream consortium, acknowledged the exceptional nature of the situation. “An incident in which three pipes simultaneously experience difficulties on the same day is not ordinary,” a spokesman told AFP.
“Extremely rare” leaks
Denmark dispatched two military ships to the scene accompanied by helicopters, and placed its energy infrastructure on orange alert, the second highest level of vigilance.
“Gas pipeline leaks are extremely rare and therefore we see a reason to increase the level of vigilance,” explained the director of the Danish Energy Agency, Kristoffer Böttzauw.
According to the Danish authorities, the incidents have no consequences for the safety or health of local residents.
The direct environmental impact should also be limited, although unburned natural gas has a powerful greenhouse effect.