The latest information about the Balticconnector case was shared by the head of the Finnish investigation with the Finnish news agency STT.
The head of the Baltic gas pipeline investigation - Inspector Risto Lohi of the Finnish National Investigation Office (NBI) - said that the investigation into the Balticconnector pipeline failure last October had made progress. He said the investigation results could be released later in the summer.
Inspector Risto Lohi also said that the NBI is investigating the Balticconnector pipeline break in the direction of a serious sabotage crime.
The investigation focuses on the operation of the Hong Kong-flagged container ship Newnew Polar Bear.
According to Reuters in late May, at the time of the information, the Estonian government had not yet received a response from Chinese officials about the request for judicial assistance in the Baltic gas pipeline case.
In the latest sharing of the Balticconnector case to Finnish news agency STT, Mr. Lohi did not comment on Reuters' information nor did he comment on whether NBI would receive the requested information regarding the container ship Newnew Polar Bear from Chinese authorities.
In January this year, Reuters quoted a statement from the Finnish presidential office saying that the damaged Baltic gas pipeline was mentioned in the talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and the then- endorsed Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.
The two leaders acknowledge the constructive dialogue between countries regarding the Balticconnector gas pipeline, the statement said.
The Balticconnector gas pipeline connects Inkoo in Finland and Paldiski in Estonia, with a 77-km underground section across the Gulf of Finland, a branch of the Baltic Sea.
The pipeline is jointly operated by Estonia's electricity and gas operator Elering and Finland's gas transmission system operator Gasgrid, each of which owns a 50% stake.
Balticconnector can transport up to 7.2 million cubic metres of gas per day or 80 gigawatt hours per day in both directions.
The pipeline was opened in December 2019 to help integrate regional gas markets, thereby helping Finland and Baltic countries such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have more flexible supply.
The Balticconnector pipeline collapsed sharply at 2:00 a.m. on October 8, 2023, local time. The valves of the pipeline were then closed to prevent more gas from leakage.
Gasgrid said that Balticconnector was transporting about 30 gigawatt hours (GWh) of gas per day from Finland to Estonia at the time of the incident. According to Gasgrid, the unusual drop in pressure means the pipeline is damaged and the gas has leaked.
The repair of the Balticconnector pipeline was carried out over several months and was completed in April this year. The repair costs about 35 million euros but Balticconnector is insured, so gas consumers are unlikely to bear the costs.
