The federal government found itself defending what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called an absolutely unacceptable decision in recent weeks — to grant a Canadian company an exemption from Russian sanctions. Siemens will be allowed to import and export six turbines that are part of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline in Europe. Here are five things you should know about turbines:
WHAT IS NORD STREAM 1?
The Nord Stream 1 natural gas pipeline runs under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany. It supplies about 35 percent of the natural gas used for electricity generation and the electricity industry in Germany. Part of this fuel is sent to other European countries. Russia supplied about 40 percent of all natural gas used in the European Union before it invaded Ukraine, and has been reducing the flow of energy to the EU ever since.
WHY IS NORD STREAM 1 SUBJECT TO CANADIAN SANCTIONS?
Its main owner is the Russian state gas giant Gazprom. The broad economic sanctions imposed by Canada and other Western countries are intended to isolate the Russian regime and pressure it to end its invasion of Ukraine. Top executives of Gazprom and other energy companies were sanctioned in March.
HOW DID CANADA GET INVOLVED?
Six turbines for the pipeline are in need of maintenance at a Siemens Energy facility in Montreal. One of the turbines, which feeds a compressor station, had already been brought in and repaired. Gazprom said that due to technical problems with the turbine and delays in its return due to sanctions, it had to cut the flow of natural gas to Germany by 60 percent last month. German politicians dismissed the decision as a political ploy by the Kremlin to sow uncertainty and drive up energy prices further, insisting the turbine in question was not meant to be used until September anyway. The federal government recently revealed that it had granted a revocable, two-year exemption to allow Siemens to send the turbine back to Germany and repair the other five turbines in that time frame. That angered Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who called the exception completely unacceptable and warned it could undermine global sanctions against Russia. The Ukrainian World Congress has applied to the Federal Court for a judicial review in the hope of stopping the turbines from reaching Germany.
WHAT IS THE SITUATION IN GERMANY?
Natural gas flow was completely stopped on July 11 for scheduled maintenance that is expected to take place as early as July 21. This type of work is sometimes done in the summer when gas usage is reduced. Germany typically stores natural gas during the summer months, and its laws require that 90 percent of that capacity be paid for by Nov. 1. As of Tuesday the overall storage level is just over 65 percent, which the German government says is not unusual for July. However, there are concerns that Russia will blame more technical issues for keeping the taps off. World leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, say Vladimir Putin is power-wielding Europe.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THE PIPE DOESN’T START?
The German government has issued a gas warning, the second in a three-tier system. If things escalate to an emergency level, the country’s regulatory authority will take over the allocation and distribution of natural gas resources. But he stresses that gas supply right now is less of a concern than costs, which are already soaring across the EU. Some worry it will trigger a recession just as economies are starting to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Many countries are looking for alternatives, seeking to import more liquefied natural gas from the United States. But that’s a longer-term solution that requires terminals to convert the liquefied product back into gas — a capacity Germany doesn’t currently have. Meanwhile, Germany is asking citizens to reduce their electricity use. It has also received permission to restart 10 coal-fired power plants and halted plans to shut down another 11 coal plants this fall. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 20, 2022. With files from the Associated Press
