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“This note means that our actions in the region, in the search by the Baltic countries for common solutions to the blockade of Astravas, are really successful,” the minister told News Radio on Thursday.
According to him, if the Baltic countries agree not to buy Belarusian electricity after the commissioning of the Astrava nuclear power plant and reduce the possibilities of importing Russian electricity to the Baltic countries, it is natural that Russia is not satisfied with such decisions.
Žygimantas Gedvila / 15min photo / Žygimantas Vaičiūnas
“Trade with Russia is shrinking by about a third, and it is natural that for Russia the problem, the decline in trade volumes, is quite painful and as a result such a note has been received,” Ž.
According to him, due to this situation, the Baltic countries do not plan changes. He also emphasized that the European Commission understood the common decision of the states.
“The coefficient itself (coefficient of 0.62 for electricity trading through the BNS Latvia-Russia interconnection) is such that it reduces trade to such an extent that they may be able to take certain legal measures, but I don’t think that let us have enough a long process that involved the European Commission, and the issues were coordinated with the European Commission. In other words, all of Europe is behind our shoulders and this coefficient is known by the European Commission and the logic of its deduction is also understandable to the Commission ”, said the Minister.
This week, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak sent a note to Ž. Vaičiūnas, in which he urged not to apply an additional coefficient and thus reduce electricity trade through the Latvia-Russia connection. It is this coefficient that Moscow considers to be the main negative element of the methodology.
This note means that our actions in the region, in the search by the Baltic countries for common solutions to the Astrava blockade, are certainly successful.
Moscow also calls for the opening of the Estonia-Russia trade link, which would remain closed under the new methodology.
The new methodology has already been approved by the operators of the Baltic transport system, but has not yet been approved by national regulators. Inga Žilienė, president of the State Energy Regulatory Council (VERT), told BNS on Tuesday that the draft of the current methodology would not implement the so-called “anti-stravic” law adopted by Lithuania and needs to be improved.
Ž.Vaičiūnas expects the new methodology to be approved in November, when Belarus announces its intention to connect the Astravo nuclear power plant to the system.
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