- Turbine caught in an energy showdown between the West, Russia
- Scholz visits the Siemens Energy factory where the turbine was stored
- He says the turbine is ready to be sent back to Russia
- Kremlin: Turbine documentation still missing
- Kremlin: Nord Stream 2 could supply gas this year
MUELHEIM AN DER RUHR, Germany, Aug 3 (Reuters) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday that Russia had no reason to stop the return of a gas turbine for the Nord Stream 1 pipeline that had been repaired in Canada but has since been stuck. in Germany in a growing energy standoff.
Standing next to the turbine on a factory tour at Siemens Energy ( ENR1n.DE ) in Muelheim an der Ruhr, Scholz said it was fully operational and could be shipped back to Russia at any time, as long as Moscow was ready to recover it.
The fate of the 12-metre (13-yard) long turbine has been closely watched as European governments accused Russia of throttling gas supplies under false pretenses to retaliate against Western sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine in February.
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Moscow denies doing so and cited problems with the turbine as the reason for lower gas flows through Nord Stream 1, which have been reduced to 20% of capacity.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected Scholz’s statements on Wednesday, blaming a lack of documentation for holding back the turbine’s return to Russia.
He also dangled the prospect of Europe receiving gas through the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a Moscow-led project that was blocked by the West when Russia sent troops to Ukraine. Read more
The turbine’s movements had been shrouded in secrecy and its whereabouts unknown until Tuesday evening, when the chancellor’s visit to Siemens Energy was announced.
“The turbine is working,” Scholz said, telling reporters that the purpose of his visit was to show the world that the turbine was working and “there was nothing mystical to observe here.”
“It’s pretty clear and simple: the turbine is there and it can be delivered, but someone has to say ‘I want it’.”
Even if Russia were to get the turbine back, Scholz warned that Germany could face more disruptions later and that supply contracts could be breached.
He also said it “may make sense” for Germany to keep its three remaining nuclear plants operating beyond a planned shutdown at the end of 2022, a policy shift that has gained support amid the risk of a total Russian gas cutoff . in the winter.
TOGETHER
A senior executive at Kremlin-controlled Gazprom ( GAZP.MM ) has said the delivery of the turbine after maintenance was not in line with the contract and had been sent to Germany without Russia’s consent. Read more
Alongside Scholz, Siemens Energy CEO Christian Bruch confirmed there were ongoing talks with Gazprom, “but no deal”.
Collapsing gas supplies and rising prices have prompted recession warnings for Germany’s economy, Europe’s largest, and raised fears of power shortages and rationing in winter.
After being forced to bail out utility Uniper ( UN01.DE ) when it became one of the first victims of the gas crisis, the Scholz government will have to modify recently introduced energy reforms, they said on Wednesday to Reuters sources. Read more
Scholz has called for Germans to come forward to raise bills and his government has urged them to save energy wherever possible, such as taking shorter showers.
“Now is a time when we must be together as a country. But it is also a time where we can show what we are capable of,” he said.
But he chose not to answer questions about his Social Democratic predecessor, former chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who has become increasingly derided in Germany for his pro-Russian views and friendship with President Vladimir Putin.
Schroeder said Russia was ready for a negotiated settlement to end the war in an interview published Wednesday, after traveling to Russia to meet with Putin last week. Read more
Putin told Schroeder that Nord Stream 2 could provide 27 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe by the end of the year if allowed to operate, Peskov said.
“Putin explained everything in detail and the former chancellor asked if it was possible to use Nord Stream 2 in a critical situation,” Peskov said. “Putin was not the initiator, Putin did not offer to activate it, but Putin said that it is technologically possible and that this complex mechanism is ready for instant use.”
Scholz noted that Nord Stream 2 would not be used as an alternative. “We have completed the approval process, for good reason,” Scholz said. “There is enough capacity in Nord Stream 1, there is no shortage.”
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Reporting by Christoph Steitz, writing by Kirsti Knolle and Matthias Williams Editing by Madeline Chambers and Elaine Hardcastle
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