Clearance of Explosives in the Gulf of Finland on the Balticconnector Pipeline Route Between Finland and Estonia
Monday 23 April 2018
Baltic Connector Oy’s subcontractor Finnish Diving Support Oy will be clearing three explosives in the Gulf of Finland on 23–27 April 2018. The clearance work is to be done under the decision on the permit for preparatory work no. 193/2017/2 granted by the Regional State Administrative Agency of Southern Finland on 16 March 2018. The explosives are located on the Balticconnector pipeline route approximately 40-42 kilometres away from the shore in Finnish economic waters. The removal of the explosives will not cause disturbance as they are located over 50 metres deep. The removal work will be carried out according to environmental and safety obligations. The safety distance from the clearance site for ship traffic is three kilometres. VTS-Helsinki will guide and monitor ship traffic.
The clearance work will be carried out by Finnish Diving Support Oy. The explosion work will be managed and monitored by Mauno Napari, Baltic Connector Oy.
Baltic Connector Oy is a state-owned company set up in 2015 to implement the Finnish part of the Balticconnector gas pipeline to be built between Finland and Estonia. When completed, Balticconnector will connect the gas networks of Finland and the Baltic countries and will enable the opening of the gas market in Finland. The EU has granted funding to cover 75% of the project, and the Balticconnector gas pipeline is due to be completed by 2020.