OREANDA-NEWS. December 21, 2009. Nord Stream AG today received the permit to construct the 50 kilometer section of its 1,223 kilometer natural gas pipeline that will pass through German territorial waters with landfall in Lubmin near Greifswald. The second German permit for construction of 31 kilometers of the pipeline in Germany’s Exclusive Economic Zone and the second Finnish permit are expected within the next few weeks. The consortium has already received permits from Denmark, Sweden and Russia through whose waters the pipeline will pass, and the Finnish EEZ permit.

“We have engaged in detailed consultations on all aspects of our proposed pipeline in order to ensure that the pipeline will be safe and environmentally sound. This kind of close cooperation will be maintained as the project further moves on,” said Nord Stream’s Managing Director Matthias Warnig.

The permit for construction in Germany’s territorial waters is the result of a thorough and extensive three-year process of environmental impact assessments and co-operation between Nord Stream and the Stralsund Mining Authority, the Government of the State of Mecklenburg-West-Pomerania as well as other stakeholders and the public. 

The permit for the 50 kilometer section of the pipeline in German territorial waters and landfall in Lubmin near Greifswald was given by the Stralsund Mining Authority, and the permit for the 31 kilometer offshore section in Germany’s Exclusive Economic Zone will be granted by the Federal Maritime and Hydrographical Agency. Both authorities had made available for public consultation Nord Stream’s application documents together with its transboundary environmental report (‘Espoo Report’). Public hearings took place in June 2009, and Nord Stream subsequently addressed comments and questions which had been raised.

When completed in 2012, Nord Stream will be able to transport 55 billion cubic meters of gas a year from Russia to Germany, where it will be connected to the European energy grid. Gazprom has already signed long-term contracts to supply gas through Nord Stream to customers in several EU countries including Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands, Belgium, France and The United Kingdom.