Dutch authorities have withdrawn the export license of the operator of the TurkStream gas pipeline from Russia to Türkiye, the company announced on Thursday, prompted by new European Union sanctions against Moscow.
The Netherlands-based South Stream Transport said it would continue gas transportation, adding that it had requested the resumption of the license.
Russia and Türkiye formally launched TurkStream in January 2020. The pipeline, which allows Moscow to bypass Ukraine as a transit route to Europe, carries Russian natural gas to Southern Europe through the Black Sea and Türkiye.
It has an annual capacity of 31.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) and consists of two 930-kilometer (577.88-mile) offshore lines and two separate onshore lines that are 142 and 70 kilometers long.
The first line with a capacity of 15.75 bcm is designated for supplies to Türkiye’s domestic customers. The downlink to Türkiye carries gas to several European countries, including Serbia and Hungary.
South Stream Transport B.V., a subsidiary of Kremlin-controlled Gazprom, is the Dutch-based operator of the offshore portion of the pipeline. South Stream said the Netherlands withdrew the export license on Sept. 18 amid wider sanctions from the European Union.
"Throughout 2022, the European Union periodically imposed additional sanctions aimed at restricting companies’ exports of materials, technology and services supporting Russia’s activities," the Tass news agency quoted the pipeline operator as saying in a statement.
"The introduction of new sanctions does not restrict the continuation of gas transportation by South Stream Transport B.V. In this regard, the gas supply of various industries and millions of households in Türkiye and European countries will not be affected in the short and long term," it said.
TurkStream carried some 18 billion bcm of gas to Türkiye and 16.8 bcm to European countries from its launch through the end of last year.
Following the sabotage of the two Nord Stream pipelines, TurkStream and capped transit flows via Ukraine are the last remaining routes as Russia has already cut shipments to Europe through major pipelines.