If the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines are not attended to immediately, salt water will quickly corrode the insides, wrote Tagesspiegel, citing unnamed high-ranking German officials.
The crisis team of the German Federal Foreign Office is investigating the leaks, most likely caused by explosions along the pipeline.
The major leaks, first discovered on Sept. 26, were caused by deliberate sabotage, most likely by a state actor, EU foreign affairs representative Josep Borrell said on Sept. 28. Gas delivery from Russia to Europe via Nord Stream 1, which peaked at 59.2 billion cubic meters in 2021, was cut by Russian state gas company Gazprom on Aug. 31 2022, on the grounds of required maintenance work.
Nord Stream 2, set to be opened this year, was frozen when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
(Updated: )
