Gazprom to re-route controversial Baltic pipeline
LUCIA KUBOSOVA
24.08.2007 @ 09:31 CET
The Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom is planning several re-routings of the controversial Baltic pipeline due to environmental and political concerns.
Changing the routes of the pipeline will cause a large increase of the total price of the project – known as the Nord Stream - by around €1bn to €12bn, according to officials, quoted by Associated Press.
The Baltic pipeline project must be modified due to environmental and political concerns (Photo: Nord Stream)
The re-routing, adding about 8km to length of the pipeline, would involve the part of the pipeline that would have passed between the Danish and Polish parts of the Baltic Sea, in a bid to minimize environmental impact and avoid munitions dump sites south of the Danish island of Bornholm.
The area is also problematic due to an unresolved border dispute between Denmark and Poland.
The other tricky part of the previously envisaged route is under the waters of Finland, Estonia and Sweden, as well as around the Swedish island of Gotland whose banks are internationally recognized as protected areas while its surroundings are full of munitions dumping sites left over from World War II.
The Russian-German project - agreed by German ex-chancellor Gerhard Schroeder who now chairs it and Russian president Vladimir Putin - aims to reduce Moscow's dependence on the energy transit countries of Ukraine, Belarus and Poland.
With safe and direct access to western Europe, it could also lead to a further boost in the EU's dependence on Russian gas and oils supplies, already standing at around a quarter of European energy imports.
This would be in contrast to the recently proclaimed goal by European leaders to diversify the bloc's energy sources - both in terms of geographical location of exports and new types of energy, particularly more environment-friendly sources.