Funding would ideally primarily derive from the EU's Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), subject to European Commission approval, though this is not a given and other sources may instead have to be used.

Elering is joined by its counterparts in Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland in itemizing various projects, totaling around €600 million, which would enhance the security of critical energy infrastructure in those countries.

Elering CEO Kalle Kilk said of the CEF funding that it: "Focuses specifically on measures which help prevent various types of attacks."

"Primarily, this would involve creating additional security measures for new assets acquired during synchronization, such as lines and synchronous compensators," he went on.

"These include tools which help to monitor the system, where there might be some abnormal situations, and which help to prevent any physical damage to the grid," Kilk outlined further.

Although the Elering CEO declined to disclose exactly what the company plans to purchase or to develop, he noted that increased protection would be required.

Elering has said it plans to establish capabilities for both detecting and neutralizing drones.

However, Kilk highlighted that investments alone are not sufficient, and that physical security at substations and other infrastructure sites could be significantly improved.

Estonia's most critical substations and synchronous compensators would be fenced and monitored, and it should not be easy for people to clamber onto equipment and cause trouble, he noted.

Kilk also assured that the three high-voltage lines connecting Estonia and Latvia would not be overlooked.

"If Estonia were to be cut off from the lines to Latvia, it would be a very difficult situation for us," he said.

Power line corridors connecting Estonia and Latvia will be placed under better surveillance, too, and more human work hours will be spent on line monitoring, with a focus beyond just surveillance cameras.

Personnel would not be present at every tower, however.

Some projects will also entail the monitoring of underwater infrastructure.

Kilk stressed that the rupture of two submarine electricity cables, referring to Estlink 1 and Estlink 2, the latter of which is currently offline after damage inflicted over the Christmas break, would not have seriously affected Estonia's electricity supply.

At present, Elering can determine the general zone of a fault but not pinpoint its exact location; Kilk noted that solutions could be implemented to automate and speed up fault detection.

The CEF funding final application is currently under preparation, he said, while the estimated cost for all three Baltic states plus Poland — €600 million — is a preliminary estimate.

The funding for the three Baltic states will be divided equally, he said.

"Everyone will get something which is important for them," Kilk added.

At the same time, Kilk acknowledged that securing funding from the European Commission for this purpose is not a foregone conclusion; there are many competing interests for such funding.

"We will be happy if we get anything from it," he noted.

At the same time, Kilk said he does not expect Elering to receive support from domestic state coffers towards security improvements.

"We can finance a part of it via European aid and congestion fees for improving infrastructure," Kilk explained.

"Anything else will have to be financed through our own grid fees," he noted.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!