The pipe-laying vessel Fortuna will begin laying the Russian gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 in the exclusive economic zone of Denmark from 15 January. This is announced in a notification posted on the website of the Danish Maritime Administration.
It is planned to lay pipes along two parallel branches. The handler will be assisted by the vessels “Murman” and “Baltic Researcher” of the Russian Marine Rescue Service, as well as other support vessels. In the area where the works will be carried out, a temporary forbidden zone will be created 200 m in each direction from the pipe laying. In these areas, work on the seabed, unauthorized swimming, diving, anchoring and fishing will be prohibited.
The operator of the Nord Stream 2 AG project announced on December 11 that Fortuna had begun laying the unfinished section of the gas pipeline in the waters of Germany. The barge is to lay 2.6 km of pipeline in the German Exclusive Economic Zone in waters less than 30 m (100 ft) deep.
Another pipelayer, Akademik Chersky, is participating in the project. On December 8, he moved away from the proposed construction point and turned to the northeast. The destination was Kaliningrad.
The US Senate approved on December 11 the country’s draft military budget for fiscal 2021, which began on October 1. It provides for sanctions against SP-2.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a large press conference on December 17 that the construction of the gas pipeline was almost complete. He stressed that 160 km of pipes remain to be laid before the end of construction.
Nord Stream 2 is being built from Russia to Germany along the bottom of the Baltic. Due to previously imposed US sanctions, pipe-laying work was suspended as the Swiss company Allseas withdrew its vessels from the Baltic Sea. The EU countries mainly support the project and participate in its implementation. The United States, the Baltic states, Poland and Ukraine are opposed.