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Data from Nord Pool Spot shows that Latvia imported 2.3 thousand tons on Thursday. megawatt-hours of electricity from Russia, and as of November 6, bought more than 3.6 thousand. megawatt hours.
Latvia began trading electricity with Russia after first power production began this week at the Astrava nuclear power plant in Belarus.
Latvia’s trade with Russia means that Latvia has violated the methodology.
After the first signs appeared about the start of the operation of the Astrava nuclear power plant, Lithuania stopped trading with Belarus.
As all trade between the Baltic States and third countries has so far taken place during the Lithuanian-Belarusian cross-section, the Baltic States have been negotiating in recent years over which lines to trade.
This is where the disputes that mature between institutions and politicians lie.
Methodologies and subtleties
In 2018, the three Baltic states agreed that after the launch of Astrava, their electricity would be traded with third countries through the Lithuanian-Königsberg lines, and the Lithuanian-Belarusian and Latvian-Russian lines would be closed.
However, after intense discussions in 2020, the Baltic countries negotiated a new methodology, which envisions that trade will take place via the Latvia-Russia connection.
Photo by Julius Kalinskas / 15min. Electricity
This is now followed by Latvia and Estonia, but the methodology is not yet valid in Lithuania as it has not been approved by the Lithuanian State Energy Regulatory Council (VERT).
Is it valid in Latvia and Estonia, where it has been approved by all institutions? Different positions suggest that it is a question of interpretation.
Spoke of the consequences
Representatives of the Estonian electricity transmission operator, Elering, told BNS that the tripartite methodology for 2018 had ended with the start of operations at the Astravas nuclear power plant and that a new capacity allocation methodology was currently in force, which was agreed by the transmission system operators of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in 2020.
However, the conservatives who will form the government take the position that the old methodology is valid until the new methodology is approved in Lithuania.
Since the former does not allow Latvia to trade with Russia, conservatives claim that the methodology was violated.
Photo by Lukas Balandis / 15min / Žygimantas Pavilionis
“The 2018 methodology is valid. Until there is complete agreement on the new, the old is valid. Latvia’s trade with Russia means that Latvia has violated the methodology “, 15 minutes Member of Parliament Žygimantas Pavilionis said on Thursday.
The Lithuanian State Energy Regulatory Council also considers that the 2018 methodology should be in force when the Astrava nuclear power plant goes into operation on Tuesday.
We have talked about the various political, diplomatic, economic and technical consequences, but we will be able to realize them while we are in power.
Ž.Pavilionis has yet to comment on the consequences Latvia would face if the Conservatives took over the government.
“We have talked about various political, diplomatic, economic and technical consequences, but we will be able to realize them while we are in power,” he said.
Conservatives are skeptical about the possibility of Latvians trading electricity with Russia, as they do not trust Moscow to provide reliable guarantees that it is selling energy that was not actually bought from Belarus.
For its part, Lithuania is seeking a regional boycott of Belarusian electricity so that the Astrava nuclear power plant does not bear fruit economically.
Another representative of the Conservatives, Dainius Kreivys, stated that after Latvia started trading with Russia, Belarusian electricity is already in Lithuania.
“Theoretically, electricity trade between Lithuania and Belarus does not take place after the launch of Astravas, but in fact there is already electricity from the Astravas nuclear power plant in our market. This contradicts not only our political positions, but also the laws of the Republic of Lithuania (…) and the obligations of Latvia, ”the parliamentarian wrote on Facebook.
As possible proof of this, the politician presents his calculations, but so far no one has confirmed them, and in comments on Facebook, energy experts assured that the entry of Belarusian electricity is only physical, not commercial.
Ministry: Great progress has been made
The Energy Ministry, headed by Žygimantas Vaičiūnas, claims that when the Latvians began trading with Russia, what was predicted happened.
“What we had predicted was that Latvia would open its border to trade with Russia after Lithuania … banned trade with Belarus.” 15 minutes in the transmitted comment.
According to him, despite the fact that VERT still does not support the methodology of the Baltic States’ trade with third countries in 2020, the main achievement is that both Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia refuse to buy electricity from Belarus.
“There are also significant reductions in the ceiling for trade with Russia. The introduction of the infrastructure tax, which has already been agreed and will be introduced next year, will further reduce the competitiveness of Russian electricity,” says the ministry.
Žygimantas Gedvila / 15min photo / Žygimantas Vaičiūnas
This is another important step for us in reducing our dependence on Russia’s electricity imports and implementing the political determination that after synchronization in 2025, there will be no commercial or technical links with third-country systems, anymore. that there will be no room for political speculation. “Especially those that are done deliberately or ignorantly by confusing the commercial and technical flows that we have while we have connections with third countries,” he added.
The Ministry emphasized that trade between Lithuania and Belarus does not take place and that participants of the Lithuanian electricity market have no opportunity to buy electricity from Belarus, as the yield for trade at the Astrava nuclear power plant was set at 0 megawatts.
“Therefore, not a single megawatt-hour that entered Lithuanian grids has been paid for due to physical laws and Belarus has not received any financial benefit from the physical flow formed,” the comment reads.
Lithuania considers the Astrava nuclear power plant unsafe, but Minsk rejects such charges.
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