Europe needs gas delivered via the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to satisfy its increasing energy demand amid declining domestic production, Mario Mehren, the CEO of Germany's Wintershall company, a partner of Russian energy giant Gazprom in the project, said on Tuesday.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th August, 2018) Europe needs gas delivered via the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to satisfy its increasing energy demand amid declining domestic production, Mario Mehren, the CEO of Germany's Wintershall company, a partner of Russian energy giant Gazprom in the project, said on Tuesday.
"In 2030, for example, the EU will have to import around 400 billion cubic meters [14 trillion cubic feet] of natural gas. In order to meet this increasing import demand, we need reliable partners, especially in pipeline distance. Nord Stream 2, for example, will provide an additional capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas when it is completed. This is natural gas that Europe needs," Mehren was quoted as saying by the company's official website.
The CEO also called for close collaboration with Europe's neighbors, in particular, Russia and Norway, which had been reliable energy suppliers for the European Union.
"Both countries are and will remain the decisive energy partners of the European Union ... Europe has the advantage of being able to use its geographical proximity and direct connection to the large energy reserves in Norway and Russia in pipeline distance," Mehren added.
The Nord Stream 2 project envisages the construction of two pipelines running at the bottom of the Baltic Sea and delivering gas directly to Europe, making it unnecessary to transport the fuel via other countries. The pipelines are set to cross the territorial waters and exclusive economic zones of Russia, Finland, Denmark, Sweden and Germany. As of now, Denmark remains the only country which is yet to give its consent for the construction to the Nord Stream 2 AG consortium, responsible for the construction and operation of the pipeline.
The project's partners France's Engie, Austria's OMV AG, UK-Denmark's Royal Dutch Shell, and Germany's Uniper and Wintershall have agreed to allocate over $1.1 billion each, which would cover 50 percent of all costs. The other half, $5.6 billion, will be provided by Gazprom.
