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The Yamal–Europe natural gas pipeline is a pipeline connecting Russian
natural gas field A petroleum reservoir or oil and gas reservoir is a subsurface accumulation of hydrocarbons contained in porous or fractured rock formations. Such reservoirs form when kerogen (ancient plant matter) is created in surrounding rock by the presence ...
s in the Yamal Peninsula and
Western Siberia Western Siberia or West Siberia (russian: Западная Сибирь, Zapadnaya Sibir'; kk, Батыс Сібір) is a part of the larger region of Siberia that is mostly located in the Russian Federation. It lies between the Ural region a ...
with
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
and
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
, through
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
. In
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
's development project nomenclature the pipeline consists of four sections, Bovanenkovo–Ukhta (), Ukhta–Torzhok (), the western section from
Torzhok Torzhok (russian: Торжо́к) is a town in Tver Oblast, Russia, located on the Tvertsa River along the federal highway M10 and a branch of the Oktyabrskaya Railway division of the Russian Railways. The town is famous for its folk craft of ...
also confusingly named Yamal–Europe (), and the partly parallel SRTO–Torzhok branch section ().


History

Planning for the Yamal–Europe pipeline started in 1992. Intergovernmental treaties between
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
,
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
and
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
were signed in 1993. In 1994,
Wingas Wingas GmbH is a gas distribution company located in Kassel, Germany. It is a subsidiary of Gazprom, which held its shares through W&G Beteilligungs-GmbH & Co. KG. History Wingas was established in 1993 by BASF subsidiary Wintershall and Gazprom. ...
started building the Poland section of the pipeline. The first gas was delivered to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
through the Belarus-Polish corridor in 1997. The Belarus and Polish sections were completed in September 1999. Construction of the Bovanenkovo–Ukhta section started in December 2008, at about the same time drilling of the first production well in the
Bovanenkovo gas field The Bovanenkovo gas field is a natural gas field located in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. It was discovered in 1972 and developed by Gazprom. It began production in 2012 and produces natural gas and condensates. The total proven reserves o ...
started. The pipeline reached its rated capacity of about of natural gas in 2006, after completion of all compressor stations. The total cost of building the pipeline has been estimated at $36 billion.


Polish gas price reviews

In 2012, a 10% reduction in the gas price for the Polish state-controlled oil and gas company PGNiG was agreed. In 2020, the Stockholm Arbitration Tribunal ruled that PGNiG’s long-term contract gas price with Gazprom, linked to an index of oil and gas prices, should be changed to approximate the Western European gas market price, backdated to 1 November 2014 when PGNiG requested a price review under the contract. Gazprom had to refund about $1.5 billion to PGNiG. The 1996 contract is for up to of gas until it expires in 2022, with a minimum amount of . During the
2021 global energy crisis The 2021 global energy crisis is an ongoing shortage of energy across the world, affecting countries such as the United Kingdom and China, among others. Background In December 2020, after months of restrictions, China fully blocked coal import ...
, PGNiG made a further price review request on 28 October 2021. PGNiG stated the recent extraordinary increases in natural gas prices "provides a basis for renegotiating the price terms on which we purchase gas under the Yamal Contract."


Polish pipeline section

In 2019, as part of Poland's plans to become energy independent from Russia, Piotr Wozniak, president of PGNiG, stated "The strategy of the company is just to forget about Eastern suppliers and especially about
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
." PGNiG intends to diversify supplies primarily through a switch to
liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled down to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the v ...
(LNG) supplies imported from Qatar, the U.S. and Norway, and possibly a pipeline to Norway, greatly reducing the significance of supply through the Yamal pipeline. Transit on the Polish section of the pipeline onto western Europe was until 18 May 2020 enabled by a long-term transit agreement with
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
. Since then, in accord with the EU Capacity Allocation Mechanisms NC regulation 2017/459, transit is offered to all parties on a yearly, quarterly, monthly, daily and intraday basis. In July 2021 Gazprom decided not to book an annual contract, creating concern that Gazprom no longer planned to use the pipeline all year as a route to transport gas to Europe.


Disruptions

There have been at least seven interruptions, either complete suspensions or restrictions, in gas supply to Poland in the 18 years prior to April 2022. Depending on the type of incident, these interruptions that lasted from a few days to half a year. On 6 November 2021, ''Reuters'' reported that gas delivery through the Polish section had been halted, or the flow has been reversed. According PGNiG, everything is fine from their point of view, as Poland received gas from both the east and the west, according to domestic demand and gas pricing. Russia has been accused of intentionally reducing gas flows to Europe for political purposes, but generally high Russian domestic requirements led to this situation. On 9 November 2021, westward flows into Germany were re-established, and the
Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of the kremlins (Ru ...
pledged again to increase the delivery of natural gas to Europe. On 26 April 2022, PGNiG's press office informed that "Gazprom has formally applied to PGNiG with a letter on legal changes in the Russian Federation regarding the change in the rules of payment for gas supplies". The Baltic Pipe between Norway and Poland will have the capacity to replace the roughly 60% of Polish gas imports coming from Russia via the Yamal pipeline, and At the end of 2019, the management of PGNiG decided not to extend the Yamal contract that was due to expire at the end of 2022. On 26 April 2022,
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
announced it would stop delivering natural gas to
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
via the Yamal–Europe pipeline, as well as to
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...
, as both countries had rejected Russia's demand that payments for gas be made in
Russian ruble ''hum''; cv, тенкĕ ''tenke''; kv, шайт ''shayt''; Lak: къуруш ''k'urush''; Mari: теҥге ''tenge''; os, сом ''som''; tt-Cyrl, сум ''sum''; udm, манет ''manet''; sah, солкуобай ''solkuobay'' , name_ab ...
s - a demand allegedly constituting breach of contract. Poland said it did not expect disruptions in supply due to its
natural gas storage Natural gas is a commodity that can be stored for an indefinite period of time in natural gas storage facilities for later consumption. Usage Gas storage is principally used to meet load variations. Gas is injected into storage during periods o ...
facilities being about 75% full (ensuring 40–180 days of supply), the Poland–Lithuania gas pipeline becoming operational in May that year, the Baltic Pipe natural gas pipeline between Poland and
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
becoming operational in October. Poland can also import gas via the Świnoujście LNG terminal. , eastward flow of gas from Germany to Poland through the Yamal–Europe pipeline is stable.


Route

The section west of the Torzhok gas hub includes about in Russia, in
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
and in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
. It is fed from the north-east by the Bovanenkovo–Ukhta, Ukhta–Torzhok and SRTO–Torzhok sections, which are all considered to be part of the Yamal–Europe pipeline. The German gas system is connected to the Yamal–Europe pipeline through the JAGAL pipeline. The Bovanenkovo–Ukhta section involved a undersea pipeline under Baydaratskaya Bay in the southern
Kara Sea The Kara Sea (russian: Ка́рское мо́ре, ''Karskoye more'') is a marginal sea, separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and from the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya archipela ...
. The western section of the pipeline was initially supplied by the slowly depleting gas fields in the Nadym Pur Taz District of the
Tyumen Oblast Tyumen Oblast (russian: Тюме́нская о́бласть, ''Tyumenskaya oblast'') is a federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is geographically located in the Western Siberia region of Siberia, and is administratively part of the Ura ...
and not from the Yamal project. The SRTO–Torzhok branch section starts at Novy Urengoy, near the developing Urengoyskoye gas field within the
Urengoy gas field The Urengoy gas field in the northern West Siberia Basin is the world's second largest natural gas field after South Pars / North Dome Gas-Condensate field. The gas field has over ten trillion cubic meters (1013 m³) in total deposits. It li ...
complex. As of 2020, the Yamal gas fields produce over 20% of Russia's gas, which is expected to increase to 40% by 2030.


Technical features

The capacity of the pipeline is of natural gas per annum. The diameter of the pipeline is . The pressure in the pipeline is provided by 14 compressor stations.


Ownership

The Russian section of the pipeline is owned and operated by
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
. The Belarusian section is owned by Gazprom and operated by Gazprom Transgaz Belarus. The Polish section is owned and operated by EuRoPol Gaz S.A., a joint venture of the Polish PGNiG, Russian
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the largest ...
, initially with a 4% holding by Polish Gas-Trading S.A. It was agreed in 2009 that this small holding would be sold, leaving both partners with 50%.


Second pipeline

In 2005, there were plans to build a second leg of the pipeline. On 1 November 2007, the Russian minister of industry and energy Viktor Khristenko said these plans had been dropped, because construction of the
Nord Stream 1 Nord Stream (German-English mixed expression; german: Nord and en, Stream, literally 'North Stream'; russian: Северный поток, ''Severny potok'') is a pair of offshore natural gas pipelines in Europe that run under the Baltic Sea ...
pipeline was preferred.


See also

* - oil pipeline that also flows through Belarus and Poland * * * - 1980s gas pipeline to the south of Yamal–Europe pipeline


References


External links


EuRoPol Gaz website

Transmissions at IP Sudzha, 2018-2022
!--via https://biznesalert.com/de-escalation-through-escalation-or-filling-the-baltic-pipe-to-the-brim-analysis/ --> {{DEFAULTSORT:Yamal-Europe Pipeline Belarus–Poland relations Belarus–Russia relations Energy in Poland Energy infrastructure completed in 1997 Energy infrastructure in Poland Gazprom pipelines Natural gas in Poland Natural gas pipelines in Belarus Natural gas pipelines in Poland Natural gas pipelines in Russia Poland–Russia relations