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GERMANY-EU-US-RUSSIA-ENERGY-GAS
Work resumes on controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline: statement
BERLIN, Dec 11, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Construction work resumed Friday on the disputed Nord Stream 2 pipeline which is to bring Russian gas to Germany, the project’s managers said, despite protests from the United States.
“The pipelay vessel Fortuna will lay a 2.6 kilometre (1.6 mile) section of the pipeline in the German Exclusive Economic Zone in water depths of less than 30 metres (100 feet),” said Nord Stream 2 in a statement.
Nord Stream 2 is a 10-billion-euro ($11-billion) pipeline beneath the Baltic Sea and is set to double Russian natural-gas shipments to Germany, Europe’s largest economy.
It has long been in the crosshairs of the United States, and particularly the Trump administration, which has fiercely criticised European countries for their reliance on energy from Russia.
BSS/AFP/MMA/2104HRS