The Baltic Pipe project has now entered the construction phase in both the land and sea sections, with construction of a key tunnel initiated on Polish coast in April 2021. Similar works will soon start in Denmark and since 2020, research ships have once again been checking the investment route for unexploded bombs from the Second World War and environmental issues. In summer 2021, three specialist naval units will begin laying 274 kilometers of the pipeline on the Baltic Sea’s seabed.
On May 5, a meeting was held on one of the specialist ships in Rotterdam named Castorone concerning the final details on the construction of the Baltic Pipe. Minister Piotr Naimiski, the Polish government’s plenipotentiary for strategic energy infrastructure, met with the Italian ambassador to Poland Aldo Amati and representatives of Gaz-System and Saipem companies.
Naimski evaluated that preparations for the construction of Baltic Pipe are in their final stages. The minister confirmed that Oct. 1, 2022, is still the date the pipeline is expected to come online.
“This year we plan to finish the welding of the underwater pipeline. In 2022, we will be conducting necessary pressure tests and certifications associated with permitting the sea pipeline for usage. The preparations underway for Castorone’s departure to the Baltic confirm that the original aims of the project are being carried out on schedule. By October 2022 we will have finished all elements of this investment program, and we will be ready to import gas from the Norwegian shelf through Denmark and to Poland,” said Gaz-System CEO Tomasz Stępień
The Baltic Pipe project is comprised of five basic elements: the construction of a pipeline on the North Sea seabed, the expansion of the Danish transfer system, the construction of a pumping station in Denmark, the construction of a pipeline on the bottom of the Baltic Sea, and the expansion of the Polish transfer system.
The Baltic Pipe is meant to create a new delivery corridor for natural gas from Norwegian sources to Poland. The investment is being completed by two transfer operators — Polish Gaz-System and Danish Energinet.
The investment is expected to be completed by Oct. 1, 2022.
