By Dominic Chopping
STOCKHOLM--Sweden's Energy Agency said Tuesday that there is only a low risk of shortages or extensive supply disruptions in deliveries of electricity and fuel in Sweden as a consequence of Russia's war against Ukraine.
The Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which carries gas from Russia to Germany, was shut down for 10 days earlier this month for maintenance and is currently operating at 40% capacity. However, Russian state-owned energy producer Gazprom PJSC has said that supply through the pipeline will be cut to 20% from Wednesday, blaming sanctions-related problems with turbines.
"In Nord Stream 1, the gas is flowing again, but only at 20% of maximum capacity, which means that the European stock build-up is taking longer than expected," the agency said.
European Union countries adopted a proposal Tuesday that will see EU member states voluntarily cut gas use by 15% from August to March to reduce demand, with the target potentially becoming mandatory in an emergency.
Sweden's direct dependence on Russian energy is less than that of many other European countries, so the country is generally better equipped to face the consequences, the energy agency said.
Natural gas forms a relatively small part of Sweden's total energy supply, accounting for around 3% of total supply in 2020, according to the agency.
Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com
$(END)$ Dow Jones Newswires
July 26, 2022 11:04 ET (15:04 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments