The Druzhba pipeline, which links Russia to Europe, was shut down temporarily after a leak was discovered in central Poland on Saturday, according to Polish pipeline operator PERN.
The Druzhba pipeline, which links Russia to Europe, was shut down temporarily after a leak was discovered in central Poland on Saturday, according to Polish pipeline operator PERN. However, it expects flows to resume on Tuesday.
According to PERN, the leak was not believed to have been caused by a third party. It follows a series of attacks on pipelines carrying Russian oil and gas since Moscow started its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The damaged portion of one of the lines in the western section of the Druzhba pipeline has been reached, according to a PERN report from earlier on Sunday.
“It is the main route for moving crude oil from shipments at sea to the west. The oil pipeline is currently undergoing repairs. Tuesday morning is when pumping is anticipated to start up again.”
PERN did not specify the effects on Germany’s supply, but a federal Economy Ministry spokesperson in Berlin stated: “We have communication with the refinery managers in East Germany. Supply security is still completely assured.”
Despite the presence of firefighters and PERN emergency services, no fire was reported.
According to Grzegorz Jankowski of the State Fire Services in Wloclawek, “The part of the pipeline that was affected by the leak was cut off from the rest. As a result, the scale of the leak is not huge; we’re talking about a rectangular area measuring 30 by 210 metres (yards).
PERN claims that there is no threat to the local population’s health and that the second line is operating normally.
It stated that it was in contact with German partners who were receiving oil through the pipeline and that the flow of oil to Polish refineries had not been interrupted. It was reported that Kazakh oil was being imported through this line even though Germany stopped buying Russian oil in January.
The German industry association for energy and fuels did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Pomeranian portion of the Druzhba pipeline, which transports crude oil from tankers that arrive in Poland and then on to Germany, is pumping crude oil normally, according to a statement from PERN.
One of the biggest oil pipelines in the world, the Druzhba oil pipeline has a daily capacity of 2 million barrels. 27 million tonnes of crude oil can be transported annually along the western portion of both lines that run from central Poland to Germany.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, flows through the Druzhba pipeline have sharply decreased, and pipeline infrastructure has been hit numerous times in attacks that Moscow has attributed to Ukraine. The attacks have not been acknowledged by Ukraine.
Since significant leaks were discovered in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines that transport gas from Russia to Europe beneath the Baltic Sea in September, Europe has been on high alert regarding the security of its energy infrastructure.
Unexpected explosions that damaged both pipelines were found to be the source of the leaks. The explosions happened as Europe was reducing its reliance on Russian energy in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Moscow has placed blame for them on both Ukraine and the West.
Leaders in Ukraine and the West have denied any involvement in the attacks and have described them as an act of sabotage that they are looking into.