$2 Billion Worth of Gas Lost – Nord Stream Pipeline

Here’s the latest developlments regarding the Nord Stream pipeline:

• Latest Developments
• Billions of dollars of gas lost
• How were the pipelines constructed?
• What would it take to rupture the Nord Stream pipelines?

Latest Developments

• Almost $2 Billion in lost natural gas will be lost due to the Nord Stream pipelines sabotage
• Estimates based upon the Danish Energy Agency. The agency expects 779 million cubic meters will be released into the atmosphere by Sunday (10/9) , when all gas pressure is expected to be lost through leak.
• Sweden has sent coast guard aircraft to monitor the gas leaks. The larger leak is no longer visible.
• The Swedish vessel, KBV 003 Amfitrite, is on site to monitor the leaks and steer maritime traffic away from danger. The Amfitrite is a search and rescue vessel, capable of supporting dive teams.
• Russia requested that the pipeline sabotage be discussed by the U.N. security council this Friday, October 7th.
• According to Gazprom, part of the Nord Stream 2 (String B) can be made operational. This twist, if true, implicates Russia. What nation would sabotage some, but not all, pipeline strings to eventually resume gas supply?
• No hard evidence has emerged. Neither the U.S., or allies, have formally pointed the finger at Russia.

What is the value of the leaked gas?

• $1,992,146,800 USD, based upon today’s price of $70.04 per million BTU’s.
• Why would Russia deliberately waste almost $2 billion worth of its own gas? The news media is speculating that Putin’s motive was to demonstrate that the world’s critical infrastructure is at risk.
  • Destroying this vast amount of natural gas is far more advantageous to Ukraine, which seeks to reduce Russia’s gas and oil revenues.

How were the pipelines constructed?

• The pipe sections are 48″ diameter and made of high yield strength steel. The individual pipe sections are welded together and coated in concrete.
• The pipelines were built by Gazprom and European partners. The costs of the project ran into the billions.
• The pipe sections are shipped to pipeline laying ships (the largest ships in the world) where the pipelines are lowered to the sea floor.
• The weight of the pipes and concrete coatings are enough to keep the pipelines embedded on the sea floor. This does not seem like a mistake that the U.S. would make.

What would it take to rupture the Nord Stream pipelines?

• Due to the scale of the blasts and distance of the leaks British military sources have stated that mines or other explosives could have dealt the damage. The blasts were well coordinated and could have been detonated remotely.
• Both the U.S. and Russia have the ability to plan and execute such a mission.