Russia’s gas giant Gazprom announced on Tuesday that it will cut the volume of gas delivered to Europe through the Nord Stream pipeline by 40 percent. The move comes as a result of ongoing political friction and sanctions that have complicated maintenance and repair work, with Siemens delaying critical reparations and adding friction to an already tense energy landscape in Europe.
Gazprom stated that it is currently able to guarantee up to 100 million cubic meters of gas per day via the Nord Stream line, out of a planned daily capacity of 167 million cubic meters. This reduction is set against the backdrop of technical and logistical challenges cited by Gazprom, which described a pipeline that has to cope with intermittent disruptions and constraints arising from external pressures. The company emphasized that the present limitation is focused on the portion of capacity that can be reliably transferred under the current conditions.
The Russian energy concern explained that Siemens did not deliver essential pumping equipment on time, with repair work and subsequent service intervals exceeding expectations and unveiling engine faults. These issues have compounded the broader sanctions environment and hampered the pace at which the pipeline system could be brought back to higher levels of operation, according to Gazprom’s account.
As a consequence, the number of functional pump stations and the corresponding throughput have been adjusted in response to the operational realities faced at the facilities. The reduced pace of gas movement reflects the combined effect of equipment delays, maintenance scheduling difficulties, and the ripple effects of external policy measures that influence energy infrastructure reliability and capacity planning across Europe.
Siemens, a long-standing technology and industry group, announced its decision to exit the Russian market in mid-May, citing the war in Ukraine and the resulting suspension of many Russian industrial activities. The company noted that international sanctions and potential countermeasures are shaping its operations in Russia, affecting rail and bus services as well as related logistics and maintenance activities that support energy projects and broader industrial work.
Roland Busch, the President and CEO of Siemens, stated that the group had decided to pursue an “orderly end” to its nearly 170-year presence in Russia. The decision underscores how corporate strategies are being recalibrated in response to the evolving geopolitical environment and the practical consequences of sanctions and war on multinational engineering and manufacturing activities across the region.