Lawdog's first post drew a horde of 'experts' claiming that things just don't work the way he said. He responded with a second post providing more information about hydrate plugs (see https://thelawdogfiles.com/2022/10/nordstream-ii-electric-instapundit.html):
Even more interesting is this little tidbit, also via email. Russia was having compressor “issues” on Nord 1, enough that the whole sodding compressor station was “shut down” and a “hazardous production facility”.
Is anyone else getting the twitchies regarding the fact that at least some of the equipment that keeps the pipeline pressurised was off-line? Just me? Oh, well then. Carry on.
Moving on — multiple sources have confirmed that Nord 2 was full of natural gas; that it was full for at least months; and that said natural gas had never moved.
It. Just. Sat. There. For — allegedly — months.
During normal operations of a pipeline, you run a pig through fairly regularly. A “pig” is a bit of equipment pushed by the gas flow, and as it moves along it shoves water and hydrate slurry down to where it can be removed; and it scrapes compounds off the inside walls (hydrogen sulphide, I’m looking at you) that might be is probably eating your pipe.
Note the part above where the pigs are pushed by the gas. The gas in Nordstream 2 never moved. That means no pig ever went down the line to shove water out, move hydrate slurry, or stop H2S from corroding the steel of the pipeline.
Again, he's not claiming that this is the only explanation:
As I said in the previous post — and I will continue to say — none of this rules out intentional Acts of War. There are idiots enough in that region that sabotage can’t be discounted.
How-some-ever … hydrate plugs.
A lot of folks are hanging their hat on comments made months ago by Biden and Victoria Nuland that the Nord Stream pipelines would be gone. Given the incompetence of this administration Lawdog is correct--you can't rule out an intentional act of war. Having spent some time in the former Evil Empire I can confirm that maintenance is not a top priority.
See his entire post for some interesting photos illustrating what hydrate plugs can do and the alleged locations of the explosions.
