On Thursday 1 October, the 27 European heads of state or government, meeting in Brussels, approved a European Commission proposal to invest €720 million under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to build Harmony Link, a high-voltage electricity cable connecting Poland and Lithuania across the Baltic Sea.
The objective is to improve integration of the electricity markets of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania with the rest of the European Union.
“This project is a landmark moment in ending the isolation of the Baltic energy market”, said Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at a press conference on Friday.
She said Harmony Link will reduce the Baltic countries’ dependence on a single source of energy imports, while at the same time contributing to the objectives of the European Green Deal, as the electricity carried by the cable will come from renewable energy sources.
Describing this decision as “great day” for the Baltic States, the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nausėda, said that “everything in our power” must be done to make the energy system in these countries independent of non-Member States, mentioning energy from “unsafe” nuclear power stations in particular.
€998 million released
A further €278 million will be allocated to nine other projects.
Danube Ingrid, a smart electricity grid project in Hungary and the Slovak Republic to improve network management and increase the quality and security of supply, will receive €102 million.
The Porthos project to develop a CO2 transport network between the Netherlands and Belgium, leading to the creation of an offshore storage site in the North Sea, will receive the same amount.
Of the remaining projects, one involves electricity transmission and five are CO2 transport studies.
€28 million has been allocated to a Bulgaria-Serbia gas interconnector project to improve security of supply and diversification of gas imports in Southeast Europe.
Of the €998 million released under the CEF, 84% is earmarked for electricity or smart grid projects, thus ensuring that the allocation of funds is in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal, said the Commission.
“These ten projects will contribute to a more modern, secure and smart energy infrastructure system”, said Kadri Simson, the Commissioner for Energy.
The European Commission press release can be found at: https://bit.ly/34iXrjF (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)