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Nord Stream 2 Not Viable, US Gas to Be Major Player in Europe - US Energy Sec.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Energy Secretary Rick Perry said in an interview on Thursday that the Nord Stream 2 and the Turkish Stream pipeline projects are not commercially viable and liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be a major player in Europe.
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"Nord Stream 2 and Turkish Stream, which is coming in from the south, neither one of those is commercially viable," Perry told Fox Business.

Perry claimed the pipeline projects have been designed to fulfill Russia’s goal to become "the sole supplier of energy for the European Union."

The US energy secretary pointed out that most Europeans understand the reality of this situation and do not want solely to rely on the two pipelines for their energy needs.

"I think the Europeans recognize fully that the United States is a supplier of LNG that they want to have," Perry said.

Perry emphasized that liquefied natural gas will be the major source of energy supplies in Europe.

"The United States and our LNG is going to be a major player with that," Perry said.

On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker agreed to increase US exports of liquefied natural gas to Europe, according to media reports.

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The Nord Stream 2 is facing fierce opposition from the United States, which has ambitious plans to export its own LNG to Europe. Washington has repeatedly warned European countries not to take part in the project, threatening to impose sanctions on European energy companies involved in it. According to Washington, Nord Stream 2 violates the energy security of the EU and also undermines the interests of Ukraine. 

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Russia has repeatedly urged its European partners not to perceive the Nord Stream pipeline as an instrument of influence. According to President Vladimir Putin, Moscow considers the project as a purely economic venture.

Nord Stream 2, a joint project of Russia’s Gazprom with France's Engie, Austria’s OMV AG, UK-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell, and Germany's Uniper and Wintershall, aims to deliver 55 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas a year to the European Union across the Baltic Sea to Germany.

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