BERLIN — Russian energy giant Gazprom said Monday that it would further reduce natural gas flows through a major pipeline to Europe to 20% of capacity, citing equipment repairs.
The move ramps up fears that Russia may cut off gas as political leverage over the war in Ukraine just as Europe tries to shore up storage for winter.
The Russian state-owned company tweeted that it would reduce “the daily throughput” of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Germany to 33 million cubic meters as of Wednesday, saying it was shutting down a turbine for repairs. The head of Germany’s network regulator, Klaus Mueller, confirmed that the flow was expected to be cut in half.
Deliveries were at 40% of capacity after Nord Stream 1 reopened last week following 10 days of scheduled maintenance. The German government said it rejected the notion that technical reasons would lead to further gas reductions.
Russian President Vladimir “Putin is…
