Russia Has Technical Capacity to Finalise Nord Stream 2 Pipeline - Kremlin Spokesman

Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that Russian companies have the ability to complete Nord Stream 2 if needed.

"I will not give you the details. But indeed, there are certain capacities that allow us to hope we will be able to complete the work in the near future", Peskov said.

He also noted that the sooner the project was completed, the better.

Energy Minister Alexander Novak echoed the statement, stressing that if Allseas is unable to complete the project, then Russian companies have the resources to finish laying the pipeline in several months.

The statement comes briefly after the US sanctioned the project, as, according to Washington, Nord Stream 2 poses a danger to European energy security. At the same time, the US urged European countries to buy American liquefied natural gas (LNG), which is considerably more expensive than Russian pipeline gas.

Both German and Russian authorities defended Nord Stream 2 as a purely economic project, not linked to European politics, promising to address the US' unilateral restrictions. The European Commission also slammed Washington for trying to punish European companies "conducting legitimate business".

The Nord Stream 2 is a joint fossil fuel venture between Russia's Gazprom and five European corporations — France's ENGIE, Austria's OMV, UK-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell, and Germany's Uniper and Wintershall. The 745-mile-long twin gas pipelines are expected to carry nearly two trillion cubic feet of gas annually, with the launch expected to take place in 2020.