After the maintenance of Nord Stream 1, the gas supply through the German-Russian gas pipeline started again on Thursday morning. The gas is flowing again, a spokesman for Nord Stream AG told the German press agency. It will take some time until full transport capacity is reached.
Gas flow is apparently lower than before maintenance. According to the president of Germany’s Federal Network Agency, the delivery quantity announced for Thursday is still below the pre-maintenance quantity.
The announced figure remained around 530 gigawatt-hours a day, tweeted the chief of authorities, Klaus Müller, on Thursday morning. This corresponds to about 30 percent utilization. A spokesperson for Nord Stream AG had spoken of announced volumes at the pre-maintenance level when utilization was around 40%.
The data on the advertised delivery quantities published on the Nord Stream AG website also corresponds to a usage fee as before maintenance. A spokeswoman for the Federal Network Agency was initially unable to clarify the contradiction, but said the authority continued to assume a capacity utilization of around 30 percent.
In his Thursday morning tweet, Müller also pointed out that the announcements about delivery quantities – so-called indications – are binding for the next two hours and that changes during the day would also be very unusual.
Previously, it was feared that after ten days of maintenance, Moscow could completely allow the gas tap and thus further exacerbate the energy crisis. After Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the West imposed sanctions on Russia. Russia, in turn, had totally or partially interrupted the supply of gas to European countries.
The volume of deliveries in the coming months is expected to have a major impact on the German economy, for example, but also on private customers, as it could affect gas prices. It should also be decisive as to how far Germany can fill up its gas storage facilities before the cold season and whether there will be shortages. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had warned of a late July choke on Wednesday night, citing technical reasons. The federal government considers this a pretext. (apa)