Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said on Tuesday that a leak that shut down a gas pipeline from Estonia to Finland this weekend was likely caused by “external” activity.
Last year, a series of underwater explosions ruptured three pipelines carrying natural gas from Russia to Western Europe, at a time of high geopolitical tension as Moscow cut off gas supplies to Europe.
While the government cautioned against jumping to conclusions, saying it was unlikely explosives were the cause, Norway’s seismological institute NORSAR said on Monday it had detected a “probable explosion” in the area of the leak.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned “any act of deliberate destruction of critical infrastructure.”
“The ongoing investigation is based on the assumption of a possible deliberate act… We stand in full solidarity with Finland and Estonia,” von der Leyen said.
Niinisto said he was in touch with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and that the military alliance was ready to help with the investigation.
He said the cause of the damage was not yet clear and that Finland and Estonia were cooperating in the ongoing investigation.
Estonian officials confirmed on Monday that undersea telecommunications lines leading to Finland were also damaged.
The two damaged elements “are in completely different places, although the timing (of the incidents) is quite close,” Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said at a press briefing.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo later told reporters that a preliminary assessment showed that “the damage found could not have been caused by normal use of the pipeline or pressure fluctuations.”
He said the leak occurred in Finland’s exclusive economic zone.
Asked about the likelihood of Russian involvement, Orpo said it was important to “gather all available information and not jump to conclusions at this stage.”
The head of the investigation department of the National Bureau of Investigation, Timo Kilpelainen, said at the same press conference that “there is no indication that explosives were used in the commission of the crime.”
NATO chief Stoltenberg posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the military alliance was “sharing information and ready to support interested allies.”
European Council President Charles Michel also expressed his “full support and solidarity” to the affected countries and called for a “full investigation” in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
– ‘Unusual drop in pressure’ –
Finnish gas network operator, state-owned Gasgrid, said on Sunday that the Balticconnector pipeline had been shut down due to a suspected leak.
The operator reported that an “unusual drop in pressure” was noticed in the pipeline running along the bottom of the Gulf of Finland.
Gasgrid added that the Finnish gas system is stable and supplies are secured through the floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Inkoo.
In late September 2022, a series of underwater explosions ruptured three of the four pipelines making up Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2, the main export channels for Russian natural gas to Western Europe, releasing gas into the Baltic Sea. sea.
The pipelines have been at the center of geopolitical tensions since Russia cut off gas supplies to Europe, presumably in response to Western sanctions over Moscow’s incursion into Ukraine.
– Check is being carried out –
Balticconnector has been Finland’s only gas import channel other than LNG since imports from Russia were stopped in May 2022 following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Gasgrid said on Tuesday it had begun an inspection of the pipeline by taking measurements “to determine the location and extent of foreseeable damage”, adding that the inspection would be carried out in stages over the course of a week.
He added that once the measurements are completed, it will be possible to draw up a plan to repair the pipeline.
Despite the shortfall, Gasgrid said the Inkoo LNG terminal has the “capacity and ability to supply the gas Finland needs well into the coming winter”, although demand is typically higher in winter.
Telecom operator Elisa also confirmed on Tuesday that it had experienced disruptions caused by a “cable break” over the weekend.
“The outage does not affect Elisa’s services as it is a backup connection,” the operator said in a statement.
Russia stopped supplying gas to Finland after it refused to pay in rubles. This condition was imposed on “unfriendly countries”, including European Union member states, to circumvent Western financial sanctions against the Russian central bank.
Natural gas accounts for about five percent of Finland’s energy consumption, mainly used in industry and combined heat and power production.
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