Ships building Baltic Pipe a few kilometres from Polish shore
The Castoro Sei vessel laying the Baltic Pipe gas pipeline on the bottom of the Baltic Sea is about 8 kilometres from Polish shores. The construction has been slowed down by bad weather, but the operation of pulling the gas pipeline ashore should start within a few days.
Saipem’s Castoro Sei and a fleet of support vessels – tugs, pipe carriers etc. – are already clearly visible from the shore in Pogorzelica, where the Baltic Pipe’s landfall has been prepared.
In a few days’ time, the process of pulling the pipeline ashore will begin – Tomasz Stępień, President of the gas transmission operator Gaz-System, told journalists in Pogorzelica.
During the operation Castoro Sei will weld a section, which with the help of a special winch with a rope over 100 mm thick will be pulled ashore through a pre-drilled tunnel. Finally, this section will be welded to the section previously laid on the bottom.
In the Baltic Sea, only the section off the coast of Danish Zeeland will be built, along with the exit to the shore. Gaz-System is also responsible for this part of the construction. The whole construction of the ‘Polish’ part of the Baltic Pipe will be completed by the end of the year – stressed President Stępień.
In Denmark, where administrative procedures led to the suspension of construction works, they have been resumed on the most important sections, he pointed out.
The sections on which works are still suspended are not crucial for the whole system. However, they will be completed and commissioned by the end of next year – explained the President of Gaz-System.
Danish operator Energinet is responsible for the construction of these sections.
Stępień reminded that the Baltic Pipe system also includes the land part in Poland. The works on it – gas pipelines and three compressor stations – are advanced in 70-80 per cent, he assessed. – he assessed. He reminded that Gaz-System is building about 1.3 thousand km of transmission pipelines and designing another 800 km. After the completion of all the investments it will be possible to say that Poland is independent from the supplies from the Russian Federation even assuming that the gas market will grow dynamically – Stępień assessed.
Piotr Naimski, government plenipotentiary for strategic energy infrastructure in Pogorzelica, emphasised that Baltic Pipe, along with other Gaz-System investments, will be the foundation of the energy transformation. Gas sources in the power industry will allow for the construction of RES and moving away from coal – he pointed out.
Baltic Pipe, launched in autumn, will allow replacing supplies from Russia. This will be the moment when Russia will lose its ability to exert political pressure on Poland by regulating gas supplies – Piotr Naimski pointed out.
Baltic Pipe is a strategic project that will create a new route for natural gas supplies from Norway to the Danish and Polish markets and to end users in neighbouring countries. The pipeline will be capable of transporting 10 bcm of natural gas annually to Poland and 3 bcm from Poland to Denmark. The investors are the transmission operators: Danish Energinet and Polish Gaz-System.
rel. PortalMorski.pl
