A joint release from the Baltic TSOs confirms that "decoupling" will take place on February 8, 2025.
"At that time, the three Baltic states will decouple from Russian and Belarusian grids to join the Continental Europe Synchronous Area. The TSOs of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have sent a notice of non-extension of the agreement on parallel energy system operation – so called BRELL agreement, which has been defining the
terms of operation of the Baltic countries in the Russia-controlled electricity system IPS/UPS," said the release.
According to the notice, signed by the leaders of the three TSOs today in Rīga, the BRELL agreement will expire on February 7, 2025. The next day, the Baltic TSOs will disconnect the Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian electricity systems from IPS/UPS and will start a joint isolated operation test.
Then, synchronisation of the Baltic electricity systems with the Continental Europe Synchronous Area is planned one day later, on February 9, 2025.
"The Baltic electricity market has adapted and operates without electricity import from Russia. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Latvia has completely stopped electricity import and export from Russia and Belarus, and synchronisation with Continental Europe is the last step to achieve the country's independence in the field of electricity supply. As a result of the close cooperation and efforts of Baltic, Polish and Continental European operators, the synchronisation project is in its final phase, and the announcement of the non-renewal of the BRELL contract is a confirmation of the readiness of the Baltic states," said Rolands Irklis, Chairman of the Board of Latvian transmission system operator JSC Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST).
The electricity systems of the three Baltic states are already prepared for emergency synchronisation at any moment, if that becomes necessary – for example if Russia attempts to disrupt the process in some way, which is not impossible given the general character of the regime in Moscow.
Until now, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania operated in the IPS/UPS system, which was a holdover from the Soviet occupation period in which the electricity frequency is centrally controlled by Russia.
Synchronisation with the Continental Europe Synchronous Area will allow for independent, stable and reliable frequency control of the Baltic states' electricity grids and will increase energy security in the region as well as enabling better EU transmission system interconnectivity and market integration. The process of synchronisation has supported by the EU with combined CEF Energy funding of around €1.2 billion, which is expected to cover up to 75% of project costs. In Latvia, financing from the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism Structural Funds (RePowerEU) has also been attracted for the implementation of synchronisation projects, with total EU co-financing exceeding 300 million euros.