Vilnius would seek EU funding for a power link with Germany, Lithuanian Energy Minister Zygimantas Vaiciunas said on April 17. The high-capacity power cable will connect Germany with either Latvia or Lithuania until 2035-2037.
“This interconnection should appear on the European infrastructure map,” Vaiciunas told the Ziniu Radijas radio station. “Of course, this involves a lot of work – planning, assessing the project’s social and economic benefits, and calculating its costs.”
“But to even get started, the project must be included in the ten-year plan of ENTSO-E, the network of transmission system operators from across the EU,” the minister added.
Vaiciunas stressed that the project should not be funded at the expense of electricity consumers.
“European instruments must be sought for this,” he said.
The minister called for depoliticising the issue of whether the cable should connect Germany to Lithuania or Latvia.
“We’re simply taking a rational approach – both countries need to assess their territories and weigh the pros and cons. The decision should be based on reason. We really need to depoliticise the issue and look at what is the most advantageous solution for the region,” Vaiciunas said.
“The specific point where the link will be built – whether in Lithuania or Latvia – should become clear in about a year,” he added.
In early April, the energy ministers of Lithuania, Latvia and Germany agreed to build a power cable running in the Baltic Sea.
During their meeting in Copenhagen, the ministers also agreed that the three countries’ transmission system operators – Litgrid, Augstsprieguma Tikls and 50Hertz – would jointly submit an application in May to include the project in the European 2026 Ten-Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP).
The Lithuanian Energy Ministry said the link would increase the reliability of electricity supply in Lithuania, Latvia and Germany, and open up opportunities for the Baltic countries to develop offshore and onshore solar and wind energy projects.
In addition to the LitPol Link onshore electricity link between Lithuania and Poland, the Baltic countries are connected to Northern Europe through the NordBalt sea link between Lithuania and Sweden, and the EstLink 1 and EstLink 2 submarine power cables between Estonia and Finland.
Lithuania also plans to build another onshore cable to Poland, the Harmony Link, by 2030, which will be used for electricity trade. (LRT)