Nord Stream Flowing '10% Over Capacity': Gazprom
Nord Stream-1, the existing pipeline system from northwest Russia to Germany, has delivered to up 10% more than its nameplate capacity, a top Gazprom executive said November 24.
Vitaly Markelov, one of Gazprom’s seven deputy CEOs, told a conference in St Petersburg that Gazprom had deliveries via NS1 into northern Germany up to 164.7mn m3/d in recent days, according to local media. On an annualised basis, that would equate to just over 60.1bn m3/yr, so 9.3% more than its 55bn m3/yr nominal capacity of NS1’s twin subsea pipeline system,
Markelov said that construction of the same-sized 55bn m3/yr Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project is still expected to be completed in 2019.
"At the same time, gas supplies to the south-eastern part of Europe, as well as to Turkey, are expected to be increased through the construction of the TurkStream gas pipeline," he said. All the capacities for TurkStream in Russian waters are built and now the project is being laid in Turkish territorial waters, added Markelov, adding that TurkStream too would be completed 2019.
Gazprom also intends this year to break the record set in 2016 on gas supplies to Europe, he added.
The Russian gas giant said last week that its 2017 deliveries up to November 20 to Europe were up 8.5% year on year.
In early September, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said that the company in 2017 expects an absolute record for the export of gas to ‘far abroad’ markets (Europe and global LNG) of about 190bn m3. In 2016, Gazprom gas supplies to non-CIS countries increased by 12.5% to a record 179.3bn m3.