Video published by Swedish newspaper Expressen Shows a large hole in the pipe, with pieces of metal destroyed by the explosion.
Filmed at a depth of about 80 meters this Monday, images from one of the four leak points revealed more than 50 meters of gas pipeline destroyed, Express reported.
“Only one event of high force can twist such thick metal,” explains drone pilot Trond Larsen of Norwegian agency Blue Eye Robotics, responsible for operating the submersible device that captured the footage.
Plus, next to the pipeline, “a huge impact can be seen on the seabed,” the Swedish newspaper said.
Both Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines were damaged by at least two explosions in Baltic Sea water, causing four spills.
According to the Swedish Coast Guard, they stopped gassing after a large release of methane, and the latest leak has not been visible on the surface since Friday.
The fourth spill was located northeast of the Danish island of Bornholm above the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the coast guard said in a statement.
On October 6, Swedish authorities announced that they had carried out a submarine search of the site and found “evidence” confirming suspicions of possible sabotage, a hypothesis confirmed by Denmark on Tuesday.
The Kremlin considers the investigation into the incidents a “fraud” to blame Russia for the explosions. “From the reports we have heard from Germany, France and Denmark, this investigation is planned to hold Russia responsible. This is absurd,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov complained on Tuesday.
Moscow accused the West of being behind the blasts. Peskov argued that “Russia will not blow up its own pipelines.”
“We regret that the entire investigation is being coordinated with a very, very small team (…) without the participation of Russia, the co-owner of the pipeline,” Peskov lamented.
Russia has launched its own investigation into the explosions, although Russia lacks the capability to investigate the site. Russian investigators are “doing their job”, Peskov assured.
With Germany, France and Denmark leading investigations at the national level, the option of launching international investigations at Russia’s request does not appear to be on the table.
The gas pipelines, controlled by Russian giant Gazprom and operated by a consortium that runs from Russia to Germany, have stopped operating because of the war in Ukraine, but were full of gas when the explosions occurred.
The use of such infrastructure is at the heart of geopolitical tensions between Moscow and the West.
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