Sabotage of German gas pipeline causes millions of euros in damage

Alleged sabotage of a major gas pipeline currently under construction in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein could result in damage exceeding one million euros, reports German newspaper Der Spiegel. The pipeline is being built to connect the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the coastal town of Brunsbüttel to the regional gas network.

The new pipeline will allow the terminal, which has been operating at limited capacity since the beginning of 2023, to be used to its full potential. At the end of last year, unknown perpetrators drilled holes in the pipeline in at least eight places. Germany considers the pipeline a critical part of its energy infrastructure and has opened an investigation on suspicion of unconstitutional sabotage.

Preliminary estimates put the damage caused by the sabotage at at least 1.6 million euros. According to an investigation by the Schleswig-Holstein State Criminal Police Office, the perpetrator or perpetrators appear to have used professional equipment, including specialised small-calibre drills.

The holes were barely visible from the outside because the plastic coating covering the pipeline shrank back into place after drilling, making them difficult to detect. Only electronic scanning made it possible to discover the damage.

Although the evidence appears to rule out anything other than sabotage, whoever was responsible left no trace of potentially dangerous damage to the 50 km-long pipeline.

According to Der Spiegel, this was not the first act of sabotage. Construction machinery in Brunsbüttel was seriously damaged in August.

Although none of these acts proved life-threatening, they highlight vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure. Some have pointed out that Russian actors may be just as likely to be involved as domestic groups opposed to the expansion of this important infrastructure.

Criticism of the pipeline

Non-governmental organisations, researchers and residents' groups in German coastal towns have criticised the government for pursuing a "massively oversized" LNG import capacity, to which the pipeline will contribute, citing an expected decline in gas demand and substantial capacity in neighbouring countries that is available to the domestic market. Spiegel reports that the damaged pipeline was controversial and had been targeted in several attempts to damage it.

Critical energy infrastructure has repeatedly been targeted in acts of sabotage. One example is the Nord Stream pipeline, a large part of which was destroyed by several underwater explosions in September 2022. Swedish authorities later confirmed that it was sabotage, although it remains unclear who was responsible.

In October last year, the gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia was also apparently sabotaged.