Putin signed the "North Stream 2" gas pipeline (Source: Observer Network)
[Reported by Chen Lei of the European Times] US President Trump and Russian President Putin held a formal meeting in Helsinki. At the subsequent press conference, Trump once again beat the Nord Stream 2 that Russia directly connects to Germany. Which nerve did Germany and Russia "North Stream 2" touch the United States?
html On the 116th, U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin held their first official meeting in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. At the press conference, Trump once again beat Russia's Nord Stream 2 line to Germany. His previous speech was even more eye-catching, "The Nord Stream 2 under construction will make Germany a hostage to Russia."What is Beixi Line 2?
Beixi Line 2 is a natural gas pipeline, and most of its sections are used by Beixi Line 1, which was put into use in 2011. This 1200 km pipeline will connect the Ust-Luga region near St. Petersburg and Greifswald in northeast Germany. Gas company (Gazprom) is the exclusive shareholder of Nord Stream Line 2 AG, responsible for implementing the 9.5 billion euro project and bearing half of the cost. The remaining half is funded by five Western companies, namely Engie, OMV, Royal Dutch Shell, Uniper and Wintershall. The Nord Stream 2 Line is designed to transport 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. It is expected that after completion by the end of 2019, the natural gas imported from Russia may double.
German's energy transformation
Currently, 94% of Germany's natural gas relies on imports, of which 35% come from Russia, followed by 34% of Norwegian and 29% of Netherlands . Long before the nuclear waste, Germany had begun to develop renewable energy, and its wind power output ranks third in the world. However, renewable energy is an intermittent energy source, and Germany still needs to use nuclear energy or purchase natural gas to stabilize the base-load power to ensure the safety of power supply. Currently, Germany's civil and industrial electricity bills are in the top 10 in the world, with an increase of up to 39% in the past decade. German Chancellor Angela Merkel believes that Nord Stream 2 can help Germany diversify energy procurement and find exports for the bottlenecks encountered in Germany's energy transformation.
Trump is looking for trouble
1The United States threatens sanctions to influence allies' energy strategies. After the Fukushima nuclear accident, Japan stopped operating all nuclear power plants. The world's third largest economy is preparing to create new energy strategies with Russia in order to seek energy. This line starts from Sakhalin Island and is paved along the seabed of the Japanese archipelago. But the United States has brazenly intervened in this plan, so until now, Japan is still buying expensive American liquefied natural gas. Now Trump puts pressure on Germany to share more NATO costs, which is actually forcing Germany to buy natural gas from the United States. The United States plans to become the world's major natural gas exporter within two years and is also looking for new markets. The United States expects its NATO allies to abandon Russian gas and embrace the newly-entered American gas. On July 1, US President Trump criticized Germany's energy policy as "Russia's hostage". He wrote on Twitter : "It is unacceptable to send natural gas to Russia!"
Free German policy and independent
1 The United States is willing to fight, but Germany is unwilling to be beaten, and Germany, which has already high electricity prices, is unable to buy expensive American natural gas on a large scale. So far, Germany has no intention of changing its plans and stressed that the project is a purely economic issue. Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy officials said Germany needs reliable energy supply to achieve its long-term goal of transitioning to renewable energy.
However, there are also critics who believe that this project is contrary to Brussels 's efforts to reduce Europe's dependence on Russian natural gas. Some people even pointed out directly that "it will be easier for the Russian government to cut off existing pipelines through Eastern European countries in the future."In the face of doubts, Merkel also emphasized when meeting with Putin in May this year that after the completion of Nord Stream 2, the role of Ukraine as a natural gas transit country should not be changed, "This has important strategic significance." Before the NATO summit, Merkel also warmly called out to Trump that Germany, which is separated from , iron curtain, can now make its own decisions independently, and free Germany enjoys policy autonomy.
German government departments have completed all approval procedures required for the project. In May 2018, construction began at the pipe terminal near Graveswald, Germany. The coastal countries Finland and Sweden have also approved this project, and only Denmark has not yet opened the green light due to environmental protection considerations. However, the project organizer said that even if Denmark votes to vote, the pipeline will not be complicated.
