Canada will stick to its plan and return the five remaining Nord Stream 1 turbines to Germany that were undergoing maintenance in Montreal, the Canadian government confirmed this week.
Ottawa had granted an exception to sanctions on Russia’s oil and gas industry in July, allowing the return of a first turbine for the gas pipeline to Germany. However Russian gas supplier Gazprom refused to accept the turbine, blaming technical issues and missing documents.
Despite Gazprom’s rejection, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed on Tuesday that the five remaining turbines would be returned, during a visit by German chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“That’s exactly what Germany asked us,” said Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly in an interview with CBC on Wednesday. “Canada doesn’t want to give any form of excuse to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to continue to weaponize his flow of energy to Europe.”
Berlin asked for the return of the turbines over fear of gas shortages in winter, but the decision met strong criticism from Ukrainian officials.
Gazprom plans to halt Nord Stream 1 flow for a three-day maintenance period starting August 31 at the Portovaya power compressor station in Russia. However, the company said Thursday that none of the equipment needed at the station was currently in Canada.
“None of the turbines for the Portovaya compressor station are under repair in Canada,” said a statement from Gazprom’s Telegram channel.