Ukraine's Naftogaz in talks with US to kill off Nord Stream 2 gas link: CEO

Ukraine's state-owned gas company Naftogaz Ukrayiny is in talks with the US on what further measures could be taken to prevent the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany from being completed, Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolyev said late Tuesday.

Speaking in Washington at a webcast Atlantic Council event, Kobolyev welcomed the action taken to date by the US government, which includes sanctions that would penalize companies laying the 55 Bcm/year pipeline.

Just 160 km of Nord Stream 2 is left to lay in Danish waters after the US implemented the sanctions in December, prompting principal pipe-layer Allseas to halt work.

"[The sanctions on] Nord Stream 2 was one of the major steps that was taken and we hope the US government will continue in the same direction," Kobolyev said.

"The game is not over yet. The Russians will try to create their own technical capacity to finish the pipeline. We are currently discussing -- also here -- to see how to make sure that that project is actually dead," he said.

There has been speculation that the US government could be preparing more sanctions to target Nord Stream 2 in a bid to stop the pipeline being completed.

Russian vessel

Nord Stream 2 -- which has been criticized by the US, the European Commission, Ukraine and other countries in eastern Europe for focusing too much European gas import capacity on one route and one source --- would double the Russia-Germany subsea gas export corridor to 110 Bcm/year if completed.

Russia had planned to bring Nord Stream 2 online by the end of 2019, but first permitting issues in Denmark and then the US sanctions meant the project is delayed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the pipeline should become operational by the first quarter of 2021 at the latest and that Russia has the capability to complete the pipeline without international assistance.

A vessel called Akademik Cherskiy has been widely billed as a replacement for the Allseas' vessels.

The Akademik Cherskiy arrived into the port of Nakhodka in eastern Russia in October last year, and left port in early February, originally destined for Singapore.

However, according to cFlow, Platts trade flow software, the Akademik Cherskiy is now headed for Sri Lanka's largest city, Colombo.