GAZ-SYSTEM gets construction permit for Baltic Pipe in the Danish part of the Baltic Sea
The Danish government has agreed for the gas pipeline to be laid in the Danish section of the Baltic Sea. The Construction Permit was issued by the Minister for Energy and Climate on 25th October. This way yet another milestone has been achieved by the Baltic Pipe Project.
- The approval of the Danish government for the construction of the offshore part of Baltic Pipe is a key element for the Project implementation. It is a construction permit integrated with the environmental decision for the marine area. The documentation prepared by GAZ-SYSTEM provides for a number of technological solutions minimising the pipeline’s impact on the surroundings, said Tomasz Stępień, President of GAZ-SYSTEM. – As to the Project implementation, we are currently working on selecting the pipe supplier and the construction and installation works contractor, added Tomasz Stępień.
The issued permit covers both pipeline sections to be laid on the seabed in the Danish part of the Baltic Sea. One runs from the shoreline at Faxe Bay to the border of the Swedish marine area, and the other from the Swedish marine area, through the Danish waters around Bornholm, to the Polish territorial sea. The joint length of both sections is approximately 133 km.
The permit for the gas pipeline construction in Denmark has been issued, among other things, on the basis of the investment's environmental impact assessment then subjected to national public referrals. Due to its international character, the Project also falls under the Espoo convention, which includes in the permitting process also other countries potentially affected by the investment. The related international consultations lasted until October this year.
The environmental decision for the landfall in Denmark was issued on 12 July this year. It was decided that at the shoreline section in Denmark, the pipeline will be installed in a 1 000 m tunnel under the beach and cliff. Tunnel boring, pipeline installation and subsequent operation will not bring any damage to the valuable natural areas.
Getting the permit in Denmark is the first of three steps in the process of obtaining all the required permits for the Baltic offshore pipeline. It is expected that the environmental permit for the part of the investment located in the Polish territorial waters, including the landfall, will still be obtained this year. In the meantime, it is also planned to obtain in Sweden a permit comparable to the one issued in Denmark.
Together with the Danish approval for the offshore Baltic Pipe section in the Baltic, a parallel decision was issued for Energinet’s offshore project elements. GAZ-SYSTEM, in turn, holds a complete set of environmental and location decisions for all the onshore components in Poland.
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Baltic Pipe is a strategic project aimed at creating a new natural gas supply corridor from Norway to the Danish and Polish markets and to end-users in the neighbouring countries. The implementation of this investment will strengthen energy security of Poland as well as Central and Eastern Europe and will contribute to increased competitiveness of the Polish gas market. The pipeline will enable transport of 10 bcma of natural gas to Poland and 3 bcma from Poland to Denmark. The construction stage is anticipated to start in 2020 to enable the import of natural gas from the gas fields in the Norwegian Continental Shelf beginning October 2022.
The Project is being implemented in close cooperation between GAZ-SYSTEM (the Polish gas transmission system operator) and Energinet (the Danish operator of gas and energy transmission systems).
More information about the Baltic Pipe project can be found at: www.baltic-pipe.eu/pl/
