To prevent any potential impact from disconnecting from the Russian grid, the Baltics have agreed to “a set of measures,” said Estonian power grid operator.
Baltic states are continuing with efforts to disconnect their electricity networks from Russia and synchronize them with the continental European power system amid the Russian-Ukraine conflict.
The three countries were connected to Soviet electricity infrastructure when they were part of the Soviet Union.
In 1999, eight years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Latvia, and Estonia, and in 2001, Lithuania signed the BRELL agreement with Russia and Belarus to remain in the synchronous electricity grid with the Russian and Belarusian networks, according to the Poland-based Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW).
For a number of years, the power grids of the Baltic states were an element of the systems of Russia and Belarus and have had no trans-border connections to either the Nordic countries or to continental Europe via Poland, the OSW said.
Related Stories
“For this reason, in the previous years, the Baltics already ended the Russian gas monopoly,” Warsaw Institute said.
The project to synchronize their electricity networks with continental Europe will be a great stride for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania toward achieving energy independence, the think tank stated.
Transition
To meet the accelerated deadline, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania must jointly notify BRELL counterparts in August 2024 about the termination of the BRELL agreement, the statement said.
Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian electricity transmission system operators Elering, Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST), and Litgrid will be ready to safely disconnect from the Russian-controlled system and synchronize with continental Europe, Nasdaq reported.
“The BRELL agreement is the last element binding the Baltic states’ energy systems to the post-Soviet space,” OSW said in 2019.
After the complete exit from the BRELL agreement, electricity prices will be determined at the Swedish exchange, not by a long-term contract for energy supplies from Russia, Mr. Grushko explained.
Impact
Estonian power grid operator Elering told The Epoch Times via e-mail that the Baltic power grids have already been part of the European power market, and the Baltics do not trade electricity with Russia and Belarus.
Therefore, the market prices of electricity are not currently influenced by Russia or Belarus, according to an Elering spokesperson.
Moreover, the synchronization with Europe will create new opportunities for Baltic electricity transmission operators by giving them access to new electricity supply markets, the spokesperson explained.
On the one hand, the operators can tap into electricity supplies in the new markets; on the other hand, they can trade their reserves on the new markets, the spokesperson said.
The new market and EU climate policies could potentially impact the electricity price, the spokesperson said, but the de-synchronization initiative itself will not affect the electricity cost as it has been “in large part financed by the EU.”
Most of these investments should have been done regardless of the transition, Elering stated.
“The power system [will] operate during the synchronization process as normally as possible,” the spokesperson said. “Consumers [will not] even notice the change.”
The spokesperson said that the power grids of the Baltic states will be synchronized with those of continental Europe by February 2025. To prevent any potential impact from disconnecting from the Russian grid, the three countries have already agreed to “a set of measures.”
“There is always a slight operational risk, but an action plan has been prepared also for the Baltic States emergency synchronization with continental Europe.”
In addition, “contingency measures have been developed that will be enabled in the event of unforeseen internal or external interference,” Elering said.
