The Nord Stream II natural gas pipeline is
a billion-dollar investment with state-of-the-art European gas
infrastructure that guarantees a secure supply of gas to both European
residents and industry, the CEOs of three partner companies to Gazprom
said late Monday in defense of the project's realization.
Klaus
Schafer, CEO of Uniper, Mario Mehren, CEO of Wintershall and OMV's CEO
Rainer Seele wrote an article in support of the project amid the emotive
opposition to its construction.
The
executives affirmed that facts are barely considered with progressing a
project that can supply much needed and competitive, reliable power for
energy-intensive industries in Europe.
They
argued that natural gas provides the underlying pillar for secure
supplies and will become even more important in this role, especially if
Europe wants to achieve its ambitious climate goals.
"For
this, we need not less but more gas - as a partner for renewables.
Today, Europe can still supply a large proportion of its own production
with gas. But domestic production is falling faster than originally
forecast," the article read and noted that at the same time, demand is
rising, a fact that remains undisputed among experts.
"Above
all, gas will replace coal and, together with the growth from renewable
energies, will enable a climate-friendly and secure energy supply.
Rising demand is encountering a decrease in domestic production – that
means Europe's import demand for natural gas is growing," the article
said.
- LNG changes market but not Europe's needs
The
CEOs stressed that although an expanding LNG market offers
diversification of supplies, with U.S. LNG targeting the European
market, it cannot compete with pipeline gas.
Europe
has sufficient terminal capacity and has considerable interest in
securing more gas for its markets, they said but noted that thanks to
pipeline gas, they have comparatively low gas prices.
"U.S.-produced
LNG is not interesting for Europe in terms of price because Europe is
in a very good pipeline distance to major natural gas producers. This is
a trump card from which we Europeans benefit every day," they said.
They
explained that Europe is efficiently linked via pipelines to many gas
producers such as Norway, Russia and Algeria, which pays off not only
economically, but also in terms of energy policy because it means
security and reliability.
- Nord Stream II diversifies gas purchases and increases competition
The
CEOs claimed that the Nord Stream II pipeline would provide another
reliable route for transporting gas to Europe, and nothing more.
They
underlined that more options mean more competition while several
alternatives inevitably translate into greater security of supplies.
The
companies also defended Russian gas and affirmed that these supplies
are an essential component of the project, especially as there is no
country in the world with more gas reserves.
"However,
this is not about Europe's one-sided dependence on Russia, but about a
partnership that has been ensuring very reliable gas supplies in Germany
for several decades," the article stated.
- Role of European Commission
The high-level executives were critical about the stance that the European Commission's stance (EC) has taken on the project.
"The
EC needs to ask itself why it has not acted in an objective manner in
the debate surrounding the Nord Stream II. The legal framework for this
project is clear and leaves the European Commission with no room for
negotiation – as the European Council's legal service has precisely
confirmed. Here, applicable law must be consistently respected, because
only this creates investment and thus energy security," they contended.
"One
thing should be noted: projects of this size will no longer be able to
find investors in future if the sword of Damocles also hangs over
economic projects, if they become instrumentalized in social or
political discussions, or if they become their plaything," they warned.
The
Nord Stream II natural gas pipeline project plans to deliver Russian
gas to Europe through the Baltic Sea supplying 55 billion cubic meters
of capacity per year.
However, many
European countries such as Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine oppose the
project, claiming that it will increase dependence on Russia.
(Anadolu Agency)