Baltics to quit Soviet-era power grid in 2025
VILNIUS—Three Baltic states on Tuesday said they had notified Russia and its ally Belarus that they will decouple from the Soviet-era power grid in February 2025. The move marked a major step in achieving energy independence from Moscow for staunch Ukraine supporters Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which were once ruled by the Soviet Union but are now in the EU and Nato.
The three nations have had tense relations with Moscow following independence in 1991, and ties have further deteriorated since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. However, their power grids remained connected with Russia and Belarus. “We will cut the last energy ties with Russia,” Rokas Masiulis, head of Lithuania’s state-run grid operator Litgrid.
“In half a year, we will not only disconnect from the Russian and Belarusian electricity grid, but also dismantle the last remaining power lines,” he added. Latvian operator AST and Estonia’s Elering also announced the decision. Elering said “the electricity systems of the three Baltic states are already prepared for emergency synchronization at any moment, if that becomes necessary.”
After decades of efforts to disengage, the Baltic states will disconnect from the Russian grid on Feb. 7 and join the European grid two days later, accessing it through Poland. They stopped buying Russian gas and electricity after Moscow invaded Ukraine. —AFP
