Significance
The Gryazovets – Vyborg gas pipeline is intended for securing gas deliveries to the Nord Stream gas pipeline and supplying consumers of Russia’s Northwestern region.
Route
The gas pipeline will be constructed through the Vologda and Leningrad Oblasts.
Technical features
The gas pipeline length is 917 kilometers, the diameter – 1,400 millimeters, the pressure – 9.8 MPa. Its nominal capacity accounts for 55 billion cubic meters per annum.
The project stipulates constructing seven compressor stations (CS) including the Portovaya compressor station to be located at the Russian coast of the Baltic Sea in the Portovaya Bay near Vyborg (Leningrad Oblast).
The Portovaya CS with the capacity of 366 MW will be a unique gas transmission facility unparalleled in Russia in terms of capacity and operating pressure. Advanced equipment and modern technologies will be used for construction.
History and Current Status
The first joint of the Gryazovets – Vyborg gas pipeline was welded on December 9, 2005 in the Vologda Oblast (the town of Babaevo).
As of December 2009, 597 kilometers of the gas pipeline have been constructed. The linear part is projected to be completed in late 2010. Between 2009 and 2011 compressor shops at the Gryazovetskaya, Babaevskaya, Volkhovskaya, Elizavetinskaya and Portovaya CS will be constructed and brought onstream.
Commissioning
The gas pipeline will be commissioned in a stagewise manner starting from 2011. It is to achieve the projected capacity by late 2012.