On Monday 3 April, the European Commission announced the opening up of the Latvian gas market to competition. Latvian consumers will therefore now be able to choose between several suppliers instead of just one.
The liberalisation of the Latvian gas market will enable several suppliers to enter this market and compete against each other, to the benefit of consumers, although regulated tariffs will remain available for vulnerable consumers to ensure that they can still access affordable energy.
The unbundling (the separation of production and supply activities from those of transmission network management) of the vertically integrated Latvian gas company JSC Latvijas Gaze must be completed by the end of 2017.
Until 2015, Latvia depended exclusively on Russia for its gas. However, since the opening of the Klaipeda liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Lithuania, other sources of supply are now available for the consumers of the three Baltic countries (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia).
The Latvian electricity market was liberalised in 2015 and there are currently 15 electricity suppliers competing on the market.
The liberalisation of the Latvian gas market "is part of a wider effort to develop diversified and secure gas markets in the Baltic countries integrated with the gas infrastructure and markets of other EU countries, and with reduced dependence on energy sources from Russia", the Commission states in a press release.
As part of the Energy Union strategy, the Baltic countries have been identified as being in particular need of better energy connections between them and with the rest of the EU, and in need of less dependence on Russia.
The Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) aims to further integrate the Baltic energy market by building a number of key items of infrastructure. A number of such infrastructure projects are on the list of EU projects of common interest (PCI).
PCIs are projects considered to have a significant impact on the energy market integration of at least two EU countries. The projects should boost competition on energy markets and EU energy security by diversifying sources, and they should contribute to the EU's climate and energy goals of reducing CO² emissions. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)