Meeting the high safety standards

International standards for building and operating offshore pipelines have been developed and adopted over a period of 30 years. Nord Stream will meet the highest safety standards, including comprehensive quality control and maintenance measures, in order to ensure secure delivery of natural gas to its key market – the European Union.

Safety standards will be applied through various means:

meticulous engineering and planning
use of state-of-the-art equipment
use of high-quality materials
implementation of a quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) system
careful monitoring of construction and operation

Independent Certification & Three-Level Quality Control

Nord Stream has engaged independent certification bodies such as the internationally renowned Norwegian Det Norske Veritas (DNV) (Link: Partner & Contractors). DNV inspectors will attest that standards are maintained in practice. They will make regular checks at every stage of the logistics chain of the permanent quality control system. These checks cover the quality of materials delivered by Nord Stream service companies, the loading of pipes onto pipelay vessels and the pipe welds made on board. All components for the two lines – comprised of more than 100,000 elements each – comply with predetermined technical specifications.

Pipes produced for the Nord Stream pipeline are subject to a three-level QA/QC system:

Contractors– designers, manufacturers and pipe layers.
Nord Stream as the developer
DNV inspections

Nord Stream fulfils its responsibility to the shareholders, financiers and the public at large by ensuring the highest standards during planning and construction of the pipeline. All relevant national authorities and Nord Stream approved the use of DNV code for the project.

Ensuring quality: the three-level QA/QC system of Nord Stream

Health and Safety

Along with our commitment to prevent pollution and protect the environment, our goal is to provide a safe and healthy workplace for employees and contractors and to care for the health and safety of the public. Nord Stream has integrated the management of Health, Safety, Environment and Social Policy (HSE) into its overall Company Management System. This consists of the HSES Policy and the HSE Management System which defines the principles, standards and procedures for implementing HSE in the project during the planning, construction, commissioning and operational phases.

Newsletter 1: Safety

How Nord Stream approaches safety issues
> Study

Map: Partners

Nord Stream as a European project
> Take a look

Paper: Maritime Safety

Key Issue Paper on maritime safety
> Download (1.7 MB)