Nord Stream pipeline gets nod from Sweden, Finland

By Simon Johnson

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A plan by Russian-German consortium Nord Stream to build a gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea cleared two major hurdles on Thursday as Sweden and Finland signed off on construction in their waters.

Nord Stream has raised fears both among environmental groups, who are worried about the impact on the Baltic Sea, and countries such as Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states which view the project as a threat to their energy security.

"The basic risk is that once it becomes operational Russia could stop deliveries to Poland without affecting its key client, that is Germany," said Przemyslaw Wipler, a former top oil expert in the Polish government.

European Union officials have backed the pipeline because it means the bloc, while still heavily dependent on Russia for energy needs, would be less at risk of supply disruptions due to Moscow's running dispute with Kiev.

A standoff between Russia and Ukraine late last year left hundreds of thousands of people temporarily without gas and European officials are concerned a conflict could flare again.

"These steps make the pipeline more likely, but still there is a long way to go," Wipler said, noting that for Warsaw the worries begin in earnest once construction starts. That could lead to Poland having to buy Russian gas via Germany.

Jubilant Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who has personally lobbied for the construction of Nord Stream in the last few years, thanked Sweden and Finland for their decisions at a government meeting in Moscow.

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