THE GOVERNMENT of Denmark is soon to decide whether to give its approval for the Nord Stream Russia-Europe gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea and through Danish waters, according to local media Business.dk. If approved, the Nord Stream pipeline route will run 10km off the coast of the Danish island of Bornholm from where it will continue on to a landfall at Greifswald in Germany, which is already party to the project. The likelihood of the government approving the route through its waters is seen as high because Dong Energy – of which the state is the principal shareholder – has a 20-year purchase agreement of 1bn cum/yr with Gazprom, the majority partner in the project.
The fact that this issue has not been prominent recently in the Danish media or in parliament has raised some eyebrows. "It's a wonder that Germany and Russia can make such an important agreement without us taking up the issue at the executive level or in relation to the EU's energy policies," said Anne Grethe Holmsgaard, energy spokeswoman for the Socialist People's Party, who has now asked Climate Minister Connie Hedegaard for an official statement on the project.
The pipeline has been criticized by both environmental groups and several Eastern European countries, which believe the move is another effort by the Russians to hold them hostage by withholding energy supplies. However, in response to these concerns, Kurt Bligaard Pedersen, chief executive of Dong, has confirmed his company's view the Russians as a fully commercial trading partner. "There's no difference between making a contract with Gazprom or making one with Shell," he said.
Basket is empty.
