The Guardian - China-Chinese ship is focus of investigation into damaged pipeline Finland says
October 20, 2023 2 min 361 words
这则报道指出，芬兰警方正在调查一艘中国货船是否与芬兰和爱沙尼亚之间的天然气管道被破坏事件有关。这起事件于10月8日发生，导致波罗的海连接管道关闭。警方表示，管道的损坏是由“外部机械力量”引起的。而与此同时，一艘名为Newnew Polar Bear的货船，据称今年已被中国购买，被指与破坏事件的时间和地点相符。该船在2017年至2022年间曾以波罗的海信天翁的名义运行。 这一事件引发了国际关注，尤其是因为去年波罗的海地区曾发生过类似的管道损坏事件。这次事件影响到了芬兰的能源供应，使其在冬季完全依赖液化天然气进口。天然气占芬兰能源消耗的约5%，主要用于工业和热电联产。修复管道需要至少五个月的时间。 这起事件引发了对能源供应的担忧，以及与中国货船是否涉及其中的疑虑。这也凸显了国际社会对能源安全和管道安全的持续关切。需确保公平的调查，以确定责任方，同时保障芬兰和欧洲的能源供应稳定。
Finnish police have said a Chinese ship whose movement coincided with the time and place of the suspected sabotage of a pipeline between Finland and Estonia that was damaged this month is now the focus of their investigation.
After a leak led to the shutdown of the Balticconnector pipeline on 8 October, Finnish authorities have been investigating the damage they say was caused by “external” activity.
On Friday, they said their focus was on the Newnew Polar Bear, a cargo ship that reportedly came under Chinese ownership this year. Between 2017 and 2022 it was known as the Baltic Fulmar, the Finnish broadcaster YLE reported.
“The movements of the vessel Newnew Polar Bear flying the flag of Hong Kong coincide with the time and place of the gas pipeline damage,” Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation said.
DS Risto Lohi said: “We will cooperate with Chinese authorities in order to establish the role of the said vessel.”
Police also confirmed the damage was caused by “an external mechanical force” and that they had found “a heavy object” near the damaged pipeline.
“A recently formed huge clump of soil containing probably an extremely heavy object has been found in the seabed,” Lohi said.
The police will attempt to lift the object from the seabed, where it lies deep in the clay, to investigate whether it is connected to the damaged pipeline.
The National Bureau of Investigation said this week it was investigating Newnew Polarbear and a Russian ship, Sevmorput, both of which they said were in the area at the time of the incident.
After completing its crime scene investigation into the gas pipeline damage on Thursday, samples are now being analysed in in the bureau’s forensic library.
It will take at least five months to repair the pipeline, its operator said last week, leaving Finland totally dependent upon liquefied natural gas imports for the winter.
Natural gas accounts for about 5% of Finland’s energy consumption, mainly used in industry and combined heat and power production.
Last year, underwater explosions resulted in the rupture of three pipelines in the Baltic Sea responsible for the transportation of natural gas from Russia to western Europe.