The decision to determine the condition of the HVDC submarine cable, dubbed SwePol, was made by Sweden’s state energy-transmission company Svenska Kraftnät, Poland's biznesalert.pl website reported on Friday.
Nord Stream leaks
The move came after four major leaks were reported earlier this week in the Russia-to-Germany Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines, off the Danish island of Bornholm.
The leaks were caused by powerful underwater explosions, according to Swedish and Danish seismographic data.
Three of the four explosions occurred in the vicinity of SwePol; one, which hit Nord Stream 2, happened around 500 metres from the submarine cable, according to biznesalert.pl.
Investigations into the blasts were under way in Denmark, Germany and Sweden, the Polish website said.
NATO, the Western military alliance, said in a statement that currently available information indicated the Nord Stream leaks were caused by “deliberate, reckless, and irresponsible acts of sabotage.”
The incidents happened amid a deepening energy crisis between Europe and Russia, which invaded Ukraine in late February.
European security officials this week spotted Russian navy support ships in the vicinity of the mysterious leaks in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines, broadcaster CNN reported on Thursday, citing Western intelligence sources.
SwePol
It is not certain whether the explosions damaged SwePol; the 254-kilometre HVDC interconnection has been out of action since September 12 for maintenance reasons, biznesalert.pl reported.
Now "specialists called upon by Svenska Kraftnät" will assess the condition of SwePol, the Polish website said.
“The cable is scheduled to resume operation on October 9,” a spokesperson for Poland’s state energy-transmission company PSE told biznesalert.pl.
The spokesperson added: “SwePol intersects with Nord Stream on its Swedish section. Its owner is Svenska Kraftnät. PSE is in contact with the Swedish operator, who is verifying the condition of the cable.”
Sweden has been planning to use the undersea interconnection to import electricity as an emergency option. Meanwhile, SwePol can also be used to supply energy from Swedish power plants to the other side of the Baltic Sea, according to biznesalert.pl.
In the past, the submarine cable had been beset by technical problems. There was speculation as to whether the issues might be linked to the activity of the Russian fleet, according to biznesalert.pl.
Friday is day 219 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: biznesalert.pl, polskieradio24.pl, npr.org, nato.int