Baltic countries ready for synchronization, Russian provocations – energy officials

VILNIUS – Officials from Latvia and Estonia, which are set to decouple from the Russian electricity system along with Lithuania next February, said in Vilnius on Thursday that the countries are prepared for the disconnection and possible Russian provocations.

"We all have plans A, B, C for what we need to look out for, various possibilities. We are ready for any possible outcome," Latvian Climate and Energy Minister Kaspars Melnis told reporters. 

"Obviously, we have prepared plans A, B, C, D, E, F and as many letters as there are. I can't tell you about all the measures we've taken, but we've made sure that we have more visibility of potential hotspots, so we could respond in time if there's something out of order," Jaanus Uiga, deputy secretary general for energy and mineral resources at Estonia's Climate Ministry, said when asked by reporters about readiness for synchronization and possible Russian reactions.

Lithuanian Energy Minister Dainius Kreivys said that he does not expect any Russian provocations, emphasizing Russia's dependence on gas transit through Lithuania to the Kaliningrad exclave.

"Of course, the bear isn't happy, but let's not forget that dependence exists on both sides. A gas pipeline goes (through Lithuania) to Kaliningrad," he told reporters. 

 A symbolic clock in Vilnius began on Thursday counting down the last 100 days until the Baltic power grids' exit from the joint electricity system agreement with Russia and Belarus (BRELL) and synchronization with the continental European network.

Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, alongside Russia and Belarus, are still operating within the IPS/UPS system where electricity frequency is centrally regulated in Russia.

The Baltic power grids are scheduled to start operating synchronously with the continental European system on February 9, 2025.

The day before, on February 8, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will decouple from the Russian IPS/UPS system and carry out a single joint isolated operation test, after which they will not return to the old system.

Kreivys said that preparations for synchronization have already been completed.

"Probably only very minor tasks remain. Essentially, the systems are already prepared, and what we are doing on top of that further increases our security," he said.

Back in July, the Baltic power transmission system operators notified Russia and Belarus of the non-extension of the BRELL contract and their withdrawal from the post-Soviet electricity system in February 2025.