Canada reinstated sanctions against Nord Stream turbines

The Government of Canada has reinstated sanctions on turbines for the Nord Stream pipeline that were lifted in early July, informs Bloomberg, citing a statement by Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Williams.

“Canada makes this decision recognizing that the circumstances surrounding the lifting of sanctions [против турбин для «Северного потока»]have changed, they no longer serve their purposes, ”the document says.

In mid-June “Gazprom” announced a 40% reduction in Nord Stream capacity due to problems with gas turbines. The company explained that they were sent to repair the German Siemenswho did not return the equipment on time. Siemens said it sent the turbines to Canada, where they were produced, but the country’s sanctions prevent the equipment from being returned to Russia.

After negotiations with the German authorities, Canada decided transfer all six turbines undergoing maintenance in Montreal to Gazprom and sent one of them to Germany. However, Gazprom never accepted the turbine due to legal uncertainty.

Now gas supplies through the Nord Stream pipeline have been completely stopped. This happened after September 2, as part of the planned work, discovered oil leakage at terminals, cable connections and other places. Later in Gazprom emphasizedthat the operation of faulty equipment is contrary to the norms of Russian legislation.

On the night of September 26, pressure dropped on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, and later two leaks were discovered that were located in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Sweden, and two more in the Danish EEZ. Later head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell declared about the intentionality of these incidents. The Kremlin admitted that it could be a “terrorist attack at the state level.” September 30, during his speech in the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused The West in sabotage on the Nord Stream highways and the destruction of the European energy structure.