USA häver sanktioner mot bolag bakom Nord Stream 2

Nord Stream (former names: North Transgas and North European Gas Pipeline; Russian: Северный поток, Severny potok) is a system of offshore natural gas pipelines running under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany. It includes two active pipelines running from Vyborg to Lubmin near Greifswald forming the original Nord Stream, and two further pipelines under construction running from Ust-Luga to Lubmin termed Nord Stream 2. In Lubmin the lines connect to the OPAL line to Olbernhau on the Czech border and to the NEL line to Rehden near Bremen. The original Nord Stream is owned and operated by Nord Stream AG, whose majority shareholder is the Russian state company Gazprom, and Nord Stream 2 is owned and will be operated by Nord Stream 2 AG, which is also a wholly owned subsidiary of Gazprom. The first line of Nord Stream (also known as Nord Stream 1) was laid by May 2011 and was inaugurated on 8 November 2011. The second line of Nord Stream was laid in 2011–2012 and was inaugurated on 8 October 2012. At 1,222 km (759 mi) in length, Nord Stream is the longest sub-sea pipeline in the world, surpassing the Langeled pipeline. Laying Nord Stream 2 was carried out in 2018–2019, and before the imposition of U.S. sanctions which halted the work, it was expected to become operational in mid-2020.Nord Stream has a total annual capacity of 55 billion m3 (1.9 trillion cu ft) of gas, and the addition of Nord Stream 2 is expected to double this capacity to a total of 110 billion m3 (3.9 trillion cu ft).Nord Stream projects have been opposed by the United States as well as by several Central and Eastern European countries because of concerns that the pipelines would increase Russia's influence in the region. The U.S. resistance to Nord Stream 2 is also influenced by the country's increased production of natural gas, which gives the U.S. Congress economic incentive to resist the Russian supply of gas to the EU, in favour of U.S. shale gas.The name "Nord Stream" occasionally refers to a wider pipeline network, including the feeding onshore pipeline in the Russian Federation, and further connections in Western Europe. Nord Stream 2 should be completed by the first half of 2021.