Baltic nations sign energy treaty
Ministers from all three Baltic nations signed an energy treaty in Riga on Tuesday which will see the eventual creation of a common gas market and integration of the electricity grid with Western Europe.
Estonian Economy Minister Urve Palo said that a free and transparent energy market in the Baltics is a priority for Estonia. “Together with Latvia and Lithuania, we would like to guarantee a strong base for the functioning of the market, the development of infrastructure, and to guarantee supply.“
She said that the Incukalns underground gas storage facility and the recently opened LNG terminal in Klaipeda will help shore up supply and increase energy independence, adding that common rules must be drafted to allow fair access to the storage facility of all three nations.
It is a priority for Estonia to develop an emergency energy plan, which would fix the volumes and price of gas during a crises. Palo said that such a plan is in a development.
“The quick development of energy networks in Europe is especially important in the light of the current geopolitical situation,” she said, adding that the EU is seeking to decrease energy imports.
Energy connections with Poland must be completed so the region can join the central European electric grid frequency.
Elering CEO Taavi Veskimägi recently said that Estonia is hoping to cut itself off from the Russian electricity grid by 2025.
Editor: J.M. Laats