Norway’s DNV GL Int’l Registrar Says Cannot Certify Nord Stream 2 Due to US Sanctions

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Norwegian quality assurance and risk management company DNV GL said it would not be able to certify the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project due to the sanctions imposed by the United States.

According to the DNV GL statement obtained by Sputnik, the US has passed legislation that envisages sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in accordance with Protecting Europe’s Energy Security Clarification Act.

The Oslo-based registrar is therefore obliged to cease all inspection activities associated with the project and phase out its support for Nord Stream 2 verification. The company added that it cannot issue a certificate upon the pipeline construction completion.

The Russian pipe-laying ship ‘Akademik Tscherski’ which is on deployment for the further construction of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline is moored at the port of Mukran on the island of Ruegen, Germany, Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020

On Friday, the US Senate voted to override President Donald Trump’s veto of the fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The NDAA includes provisions for imposing sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 and TurkStream pipeline projects.

The Nord Stream 2 project aims at laying a 745-mile-long twin pipeline that will carry up to 2 trillion cubic feet of gas per year from Russia to Germany. The US opposes the project and seeks to export more liquefied natural gas to Europe. The pipeline construction was suspended a year ago after sanctions forced Swiss pipelay company Allseas to withdraw from the project. Pipeline construction was resumed earlier this December and is expected to take several months, according to expert estimates.

Sourse: sputniknews.com