Replacing what are believed to be Russian-made parts in Gas Interconnection Poland-Lithuania (GIPL) is possible without halting the pipeline’s operations, Nemunas Biknius, CEO of Amber Grid, Lithuania’s gas transmission system operator, said on Wednesday.
“The repair in these sections where the components are installed is possible without stopping the gas pipeline. It can be done by creating bypass lines and using other technological means, as well as utilising the system’s existing capabilities,” Biknius told the parliamentary Committee on Audit.
“Our aim is to make the replacements at the contractor’s expense without stopping the gas pipeline,” he added.
According to Biknius, Amber Grid will use an 8-million-euro bank guarantee provided to Alvora, the project’s contractor, and will launch an international tender for the replacement of the pipeline’s components. This means that the elimination of GIPL defects may take time, he said.
The CEO said Amber Grid has a clear and detailed plan for replacing the parts that have raised suspicions. He did not rule out the possibility of legal disputes with Alvora.
Romas Zienka, director for compliance and risk management at Epso-G, Amber Grid’s shareholder, told the 15min news website in late February that the allegedly Russian-made GIPL parts would be replaced by a company that poses no threat to national security.
Amber Grid announced in late February that it had filed a claim against Alvora regarding the allegedly Russian-made GIPL components, and the Energy Ministry said that the parts had to be replaced “within the shortest possible time”.
The LRT Investigation Team was the first to report on Alvora’s deal for connecting parts with a company that is part of ChelPipe Group, a Russian company supporting the Kremlin’s military infrastructure, back in 2020.
In the wake of the scandal, Amber Grid instructed Alvora to terminate the deal with the Russians and look for European producers.
Alvora is suspected of then concocting a scheme to cover things up by using forged certificates from European companies for Russian parts.
GIPL was launched on May 1, 2023. The total value of the project amounts to around 500 million euros, with about 60 percent of the funding provided by the European Commission.
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