Significant damage to the LNG pipeline in Schleswig-Holstein

The Federal Prosecutor's Office is investigating after damage was discovered on the “ETL 180” LNG pipeline. There was damage of around 1.6 million euros.

Hamburg – The damage to an LNG pipeline in Schleswig-Holstein is apparently greater than expected. The “ETL 180” pipeline from the Dutch energy company Gasunie was supposed to transport gas from the liquefied natural gas terminal in Brunsbüttel (Dithmarschen district) to the national grid from the end of 2023. During an electronic test, Gasunie discovered damage to the pipe and informed the local police at the end of November. How the mirror Reportedly, the line was drilled in at least eight places in the fourth section. The damage amounts to around 1.6 million euros.

The Schleswig-Holstein State Criminal Police Office found that the perpetrators used highly professional tools, including a small-caliber drill the mirror. According to that Schleswig-Holstein Newspaper Publishers (shz) The drill holes have a diameter of around ten millimeters. They were hardly visible from the outside because the plastic layer over the steel gas pipe closed again after drilling, the newspaper reports, citing security circles.

LNG pipeline in Schleswig-Holstein: Resistance and legal disputes

The case is now also arousing national interest. LNG pipelines are part of Germany’s “critical infrastructure”. At the beginning of January, the Federal Prosecutor's Office took over the investigation on suspicion of unconstitutional sabotage, as a spokeswoman announced on January 4th. Further details have not yet been published.

The gas pipeline has been controversial since construction began. In 2022, numerous activists occupied the construction site, demanding the phase-out of gas use and the dismantling of the existing gas infrastructure. Loud Mirror A sawed pipe was found in spring 2023, but the investigation was discontinued due to a lack of suspects. At that time it was already by NEXTG.tv reported that Gas prices in Germany could double. In August last year, “Ende Terrain” activists blocked the construction of the line. “The construction of the pipeline is a climate crime,” said a spokeswoman shz. Some residents also rejected the pipeline: two farmers took their lawsuit against the construction to the Federal Administrative Court, as local media reported. However, the lawsuit was rejected.