Pioneering Spirit resumes TurkStream pipelaying

The Pioneering Spirit vessel on Tuesday resumed the pipelaying operations for the second string of the TurkStream offshore gas pipeline, moving towards the Kiyikoy settlement in Turkey.

After entering the Black Sea on June 20, the vessel conducted a set of preparatory works, including stinger deployment and pipelay equipment check-ups, Russia’s Gazprom, the operator of the gas pipeline that will deliver Russian gas to European consumers, said in a statement.

The pipeline head of the second string was recovered from the bottom of the Black Sea on the border of Russian and Turkish exclusive economic zones (EEZs) at a depth of 2,170 meters.

The 224-kilometer section of the pipeline leading to the EEZ border was built in 2017.

In April 2018, pipelaying for the first string of TurkStream’s offshore section was completed, with a total of 1,161 kilometers or 62 percent of the overall gas pipeline length of pipes laid along the two strings.