Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda (C), Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics (1st R), Estonian President Alar Karis (1st L), Polish President Andrzej Duda (2nd L) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet the press in Vilnius, Lithuania, Feb. 9, 2025. (Xinhua)
VILNIUS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia synchronized their power grids with Western Europe on Sunday afternoon, the Baltic News Service (BNS) reported.
The three Baltic countries disconnected from the BRELL energy network, which comprises Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, on Saturday morning and operated in isolated mode until Sunday afternoon.
They are now linked to the synchronous grid of Continental Europe (UCTE) via the Lithuanian-Polish electricity connection, LitPol Link.
In synchronization with Western Europe, the three countries will manage the frequency of their power grids independently while coordinating with other nations within UCTE. They will also be responsible for balancing their grids.
A total of more than 1.6 billion euros (1.65 billion U.S. dollars) has been invested in the synchronization project across the Baltic States and Poland, with approximately 1.2 billion euros allocated from the European Union's Energy Infrastructure Connections Facility, according to Lithuania's Energy Ministry.
The Baltic countries initiated the project to connect to UCTE in 2009, initially planning to complete it by early 2026. However, following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, and the European Commission agreed to expedite the connection to February 2025. (1 euro = 1.03 U.S. dollar) ■
A ceremony of three Baltic countries' power synchronization with Western Europe is held in Vilnius, Lithuania, Feb. 9, 2025. (Photo by Alfredas Pliadis/Xinhua)
A ceremony of three Baltic countries' power synchronization with Western Europe is held in Vilnius, Lithuania, Feb. 9, 2025. (Photo by Alfredas Pliadis/Xinhua)
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda (C), Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics (1st R), Estonian President Alar Karis (1st L), Polish President Andrzej Duda (2nd L) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet the press in Vilnius, Lithuania, Feb. 9, 2025. (Xinhua)
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda (C), Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics (1st R), Estonian President Alar Karis (1st L), Polish President Andrzej Duda (2nd L) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet the press in Vilnius, Lithuania, Feb. 9, 2025. (Xinhua)
