“Made in Russia” parts of the Poland-Lithuania gas pipe to be replaced

Lithuanian regulator VERT has ruled that parts of the Poland-Lithuania Gas Pipeline produced in Russia must be replaced for safety reasons.

VERT concluded that some parts used in the construction of the Poland-Lithuania Gas Pipeline do not have documents confirming their origin. As many as 123 of the 1022 parts used in the construction of the pipeline are to be replaced.

This installation is important from the point of view of security of gas supplies to Poland and the Baltic countries because it connects them and the FSRU floating gas port in Klaipeda, which is used by the Polish PGNiG. The pipe was launched ahead of schedule due to the energy crisis fuelled by Russia and was one of the sources of security of supply despite Gazprom breaking the Yamal contract in April 2022.

The Lithuanian regulator assessed that the operator of the gas transmission network Amber Grid, which is a partner of the Polish Gaz-System at GIPL, improperly examined the quality and origin of the parts used in the investment. Allegedly Alvora, the main contractor, used Russian sub-contractors, which is not allowed for security reasons. Their value was estimated by the Ministry of Energy of Lithuania at EUR 300 thousand. GIPL cost Lithuanians EUR 116 million. Replacement of the parts should not affect the operation of the pipeline.

LRT / Wojciech Jakóbik