A Chinese cargo ship captain accused of damaging a natural gas pipeline on the bottom of the Baltic Sea two years ago appeared in a court in Hong Kong. According to the South China Morning Post, Wan Wenguo, 43, was detained pending trial after appearing for a hearing at the Eastern District Court in Hong Kong on Thursday, May 8. He faces a charge of criminal damage and two charges related to violating maritime regulations on operating a vessel. The next trial is scheduled for early July.
The container ship he was commanding, the “Newnew Polar Bear,” flying the Hong Kong flag, is alleged to have ruptured the Balticconnector, an important natural gas infrastructure connecting Estonia and Finland, while crossing the Gulf of Finland in October 2023. Authorities in Finland and Estonia found that the 77-kilometer pipeline was severed due to the ship dragging its anchor.
According to a Finnish government investigation, the anchor of the “Newnew Polar Bear” dragged on the seabed of the Baltic Sea for hundreds of kilometers, resulting in the cutting of cables and natural gas pipelines. A 6,000-kilogram anchor was recovered just meters away from the incident site.
Following the incident, the “Newnew Polar Bear” sailed to St. Petersburg, Russia, and was later spotted in the Arkhangelsk region before finally docking at the Tianjin Port.
Nearly a year later, in August 2024, the Chinese authorities officially admitted that the gas pipeline rupture was caused by a Chinese vessel, but they claimed it was “an accident.”
Nearly two years later, the prosecutors in Hong Kong charged Wan Wenguo with responsibility for the damage to the Balticconnector and an adjacent communication cable. Specific charges include failure to ensure the vessel was equipped with proper anchoring gear and failure to submit daily reports to the shipowner as required.
After the natural gas pipeline rupture, Estonia and Finland sent several official letters seeking assistance from the Chinese government, but as of November last year, they had not received any response. Experts are generally skeptical about the possibility of receiving a just judgment in this case.
European media reported that the repair of the Balticconnector has cost 35 million euros so far, a figure that China has not yet taken responsibility for.
Since 2022, there have been multiple incidents of infrastructure disruption in the Baltic Sea region. In response, NATO has strengthened its maritime presence, deploying warships, aircraft, and naval drones.