Stop another turbine
On July 25, Gazprom notified via its Telegram channel that European gas supplies would face another reduction. The notice explained that, due to the end of the maintenance window before the revision and in line with Rostekhnadzor instructions while considering the engine’s technical state, Gazprom would halt the operation of yet another Siemens gas turbine at Portovaya CS.
Starting from 07:00 Moscow time on July 27, the daily capacity of the Portovaya compressor station was set to rise to 33 million cubic meters. According to Gascade, the German gas transmission operator, Nord Stream 1 carried roughly 20 percent of its maximum throughput on Wednesday. Delivery levels through the pipeline declined sharply, dropping from 67 million cubic meters to 31 million cubic meters in a single day, representing just under one-fifth of the declared maximum capacity.
Gazprom’s website, cited by Italian news outlets, stated that energy supplies to the company would amount to about 27 million cubic meters, up from 34 million cubic meters in the preceding days on Wednesday. The German government spokesperson Christiane Hofmann said Berlin was aware of the recent supply reductions and was monitoring the situation closely. She added that current contracts were not being honored at this moment and that there were no clear technical reasons for the prior reductions as before.
Consequences of Western sanctions
Gazprom’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that the drop in gas pumped into Europe via Nord Stream should not be interpreted as an attempt to force the EU to lift sanctions against Russia. He asserted that the decline reflects shrinking technical possibilities for pumping due to the restrictions and sanctions affecting Europe. He argued that Western sanctions hinder timely maintenance with the necessary equipment, spare parts, and major repairs. Once maintenance is complete, Gazprom would be able to increase supplies to Europe again.
Peskov emphasized that Gazprom has consistently met its obligations but cannot guarantee pumping if imported units cannot be serviced because of sanctions. Trade data on the London ICE market showed European gas prices surpassing 2,500 dollars per thousand cubic meters for the first time since early March this year. Prices overall rose about 10 percent since Wednesday, with market behavior closely tied to Gazprom’s announcements about reducing flow through Nord Stream.
At the same time, the broader price picture reflects ongoing tension in energy markets and the potential for further fluctuations depending on policy moves and maintenance schedules announced by Gazprom.
Turbine stranded in Canada
Gazprom previously reduced Nord Stream supply on June 14, citing the untimely return of gas pumping units from repair with the German company Siemens. The company announced a limit on Portovaya CS operations and cut gas delivery to 100 million cubic meters per day. The following day it announced the halting of another Siemens turbine at Portovaya CS, lowering the compressor station’s daily capacity to 67 million cubic meters.
One turbine an obligation under sanctions was stranded in Canada for repairs. Ottawa agreed to return the turbine to Gazprom, but it would travel through Germany, and timing for delivery to Russia remained uncertain. Gazprom had repeatedly requested Siemens to provide documents authorizing the extraction of a gas turbine engine for Portovaya CS. On July 25 Siemens supplied documents, which Gazprom reviewed but did not consider them to address all previously identified risks or raise new questions. The Telegram channel noted that there were open questions about EU and UK sanctions and that resolving these issues was crucial for delivering the engine to Russia and for urgent overhaul of other gas turbines at Portovaya CS.
Under those circumstances Gazprom again sought urgent assistance from Siemens to provide the necessary documents and clarifications to resolve the remaining issues.