The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is being built under the Baltic sea to deliver 100 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas to Germany annually. Poland opposes it and the United States Senate passed bill imposing sanctions on companies involved in building Nord Stream 2.
Two days before voting, the Coalition of Polish Americans appealed to US senators to pass these sanctions. The info is on the coalitionpa.org website and on Twitter https://twitter.com/CoalitionOfPA/status/1204594105067589634:
“As an organization representing Polish Americans we are concerned that Nord Stream 2 would exacerbate the dependence of several European countries on Russian gas exports and would diminish the energy security of Poland and Europe. We strongly support passage of these provisions.”
The bill passed by the US Senate will target pipe laying companies based in Western Europe. Among such is the Dutch-Swiss company Allseas that works off the Danish island of Bornholm. The sanctions would require the U.S. Secretary of State to issue a report within 60 days on vessels that are engaging in pipe-laying for the Nord Stream 2 and TurkStream pipelines. If a company is listed in the reports, it would then be blacklisted by Washington unless the president determined the company was winding down the operations. The president could also waive the sanctions based on national security considerations.
If completed Nord Stream 2, led by state-owned Gazprom, would allow Russia to bypass Poland and Ukraine to deliver gas under the Baltic Sea to Germany. U.S. lawmakers say Ukraine could lose billions of dollars in transit fees if it is built and that it would increase Russia’s political grip on Europe.
Washington has touted exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas, or LNG, to provide Europe with alternatives to gas pipelines from Russia.