Gazprom Official Reiterates Potential of Proposed Second Russia-Turkey Gas Pipeline

Oct. 16, 2022 (EIRNS)—Russian Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller stated in an interview on Russian TV on Sunday: “You know, nothing’s impossible.” He was responding to a question about whether the natural gas that Russia had been sending to Europe via Nord Stream prior to the sanctions and then the September terrorist sabotage of that pipeline, could actually be fully replaced by constructing a second pipeline connecting Russia with Turkey, via the Black Sea.

Just such a project was agreed in principle in a summit meeting between Russian President Putin and Turkish President Erdogan Oct. 13 in Astana. Putin said the construction of a second pipeline network across the Black Sea using a hub in Turkey could help bring down “exorbitant” gas prices and return stability to the market.

Miller did the math, for anyone in Europe who was listening.

“I’d like to remind you that we have the experience of preparing for the implementation of the South Stream project, which was originally planned to have a capacity of 63 billion cubic meters [per year]. Therefore, if we’re talking even about the technical documentation for the development of the route, for South Stream—all this was already done at one time,”

Miller said.

South Stream began construction in 2012, but was stopped in 2014 due to EU sanctions. It was replaced by TurkStream, which can carry about 32 billion cubic meters per year (bcm)—about half of what was planned for South Stream.

The current status of the major Russian gas pipelines is as follows:

Nord Stream 1: 55 bcm (sabotaged).

Nord Stream 2: 55 bcm (built but never opened due to EU sanctions).

South Stream: 63 bcm (started but not completed due to EU sanctions).

Yamal-Europe: 33 bcm (shut down this summer by Poland).

TurkStream: 32 bcm (in operation).

Soyuz: 23 bcm (in reduced operation, through Ukraine).