The pipeline begins near Narva Bay in the Kingisepp district of Russia’s Leningrad region, and is connected to the country’s gas network via a nearby compressor station operated by Gazprom.
Construction of the Russian section was divided into an offshore and onshore segment, the latter of which contains the landfall facilities. These include all systems necessary to monitor the parameters of incoming gas and ensure safe operation, such as Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) launchers and shut-down valves.
Because the onshore section passes through the protected Kurgalsky nature reserve, construction methods were tailored to ensure the smallest possible environmental footprint. Additionally, our Environmental and Community Initiative Strategy (ECo-I) ensured that the pipeline was built responsibly, achieving a net gain for the project area in Russia.
In line with this approach, nearshore and offshore preparatory and construction work was performed by state-of-the art pipelaying vessels. Finally, these two segments of the pipeline were connected in a procedure known as above water tie-in (AWTI), where two previously laid pipe ends were raised above the water, welded together, tested for quality and then returned to the seafloor.
Throughout construction, comprehensive environmental monitoring and external oversight was carried out to ensure that environmental impacts did not exceed thresholds outlined in the environmental impact assessment report.
