Russia Claims Ukrainian Attack on TurkStream Subsea Pipeline System
On Monday, Russia's defense ministry claimed that its forces thwarted a Ukrainian attack on shoreside components of the TurkStream gas pipeline, the subsea line that connects Russian producer Gazprom to buyers in Turkey and the EU.
TurkStream runs from a terminal near Anapa, Krasnodar to the Turkish town of Kiyikoy, west of Istanbul. The landing point is less than 100 miles from the border with Europe, and the line feeds gas networks in Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia and neighboring states in southeast Europe.
The Kremlin alleged Monday that Ukraine used a long-range drone strike to target the Russkaya compressor station on the Russian side of the pipeline. It claimed that air defense units shot down nine Ukrainian drones before they could hit the site, and that only minor damage was reported. The TurkStream line remains in operation, the ministry said.
Ukraine has not commented on the alleged strike, but has repeatedly attacked Russian energy export infrastructure in retaliation for Russian drone strikes on the Ukrainian electric grid.
TurkStream is one of the last Russian pipeline gas connections to Europe. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a dispute over terms of payment resulted in a near-shutdown of westbound Russian gas, which had powered European economies since the Cold War. Though EU gas prices skyrocketed, the disruption was short-lived - and Europe began to decouple its energy markets from Russia, shifting instead to new sources like American LNG.
The destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline system and the closure of the trans-Ukrainian pipeline network late last year have cut off most of Gazprom's access to Europe, with dire effects on its finances. The giant company was once a top earner for the Russian government; it posted a loss in 2023, its first in more than 30 years, and is now reportedly contemplating large-scale layoffs at its headquarters. The TurkStream (and the smaller BlueStream) are Gazprom's last functioning gas links to Europe. While other connections have been shuttered, the TurkStream's EU-bound transport volumes rose by 23 percent in 2024.
Like Nord Stream, the TurkStream megaproject is a symbol of Russian influence. It was personally announced and inaugurated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and remains among the most ambitious subsea pipeline projects ever constructed. It starts at the Russkaya compressor station, the most powerful facility of its kind in the world, then follows two parallel 32-inch pipelines running about 500 nautical miles under the Black Sea.
TurkStream was among the first projects for Allseas' supersized pipelay/heavy lift ship, Pioneering Spirit, the largest vessel by displacement in the world.