Lithuanian government forms high-level commission to block electricity supplies from BelNPP

<p> MINSK, Jan 14 – PrimePress. The Lithuanian government on Jan 13, 2021 decided to set up a high-level commission tasked with coordinating measures to enhance safety of the Lithuanian energy system and its effective synchronisation with European power grids as well as measures to reduce threats fr om the Belarusian nuclear power plant (BelNPP, Astravyets, Grodno Oblast), which should include blocking supplies of Belarusian electricity, reads a statement issued by the press service of the Lithuanian government. </p> <p>   </p> <p> The commission will be headed by Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė. The body will include heads of ministries of foreign affairs, finance, energy, environment, the State Energy Regulatory Board (VERT), the State Nuclear Energy Safety Inspectorate (VATESI), as well as energy companies Epso-G, Ignitis Group and Litgrid. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Lithuanian Energy Minister Dainius Kreivys noted on January 13, the measures previously taken to prevent electricity from BelNPP from entering Lithuania were insufficient. “This just once again proves the need to work on a complete blockade of the BelNPP and increase our energy independence and grid security,” he said. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Kreivis previously reported that Lithuania would prepare a plan for a complete blockade of electricity supplies from the BelNPP in late January - early February 2021. This is, in particular, due to the fact that, according to the Lithuanian State Energy Regulatory Service, Belarusian electricity is still supplied to the country from Latvia, wh ere it is purchased on the Riga exchange. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Lithuania stopped electricity trade with Belarus on November 3 after the launch of the Belarusian NPP. However, the Baltic grids still physically transmit energy, and Latvia began trading electricity with Russia on November 5, which Vilnius considers a violation of the Baltic trilateral agreement. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Lithuania has been objecting the construction of the Belarusian NPP near its border since the very inception of the project. The Lithuanian parliament calls the NPP a threat to national security of the country. The Belarusian NPP began to generate electricity on November 3, and was shut down on November 8 due to a transformer explosion. </p> <p>   </p> <p> The first unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant reached the nominal capacity on January 12. The thermal capacity of the unit is 3200 MW and the electric capacity is 1,170 MW. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Belarus’ first nuclear power plant in Ostrovets (a town in the Grodno Oblast also referred to as Astravyets) will have two units with a combined capacity of up to 2,400 megawatts. The AES-2006 Russian standard design of (generation 3+) was chosen for its construction. Rosatom’s division Atomstroyexport acts as the general contractor for the NPP construction. The Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant RUE is the project customer and the future operator of the NPP. The ceremony of the official launch of the NPP took place in early November 2020. The first power unit of the NPP is expected to be put into commercial operation in 2021, the second power unit – in H1 2022. End </p>

2021-01-15

Primepress