Although Lithuania has regained its political independence already since 1990, its energy dependence on Russia - the leading supplier for Lithuania, as well as for the rest of Europe with rare exceptions - twenty years later was unchanged compared to the years of Soviet rule.
Lithuania is still dependent on Russian energy system with respect to each type of source: oil, gas and electricity, and still sees no alternative for its energy imports.
In the European Union's energy policy documents, Lithuania, together with the other Baltic states, is identified as an 'island enegetica ", which means that there is a system of connections with other EU countries.
Although the Baltic state is in effect one of the new nations to have entered the EU family, in terms of energy is strictly isolated from the rest of Europe. The attempt to develop an energy infrastructure links with other countries went bankrupt and with it the hope of supply from alternative sources.
The Gas
The most ominous situation that the Baltic country has to bear the sector of natural gas. Lithuania imports all its gas needs from Russia using the pipeline Minsk - Vilnius - Kaliningrad, Russian-controlled sector monopoly: Gazprom.
The dependence on Russia in the field gas is compounded by the fact that Lithuania has not, on its territory for natural gas deposits and can not import gas from the sea by failing to natural gas terminals in liquid form (LNG). Unfortunately, the vulnerability of the country on the face "gas" is set to grow over time because, despite the economic crisis has not spared even the Baltic country, the demand for gas already in the first half of 2010 has grown considerably.
was in terms of EU membership for Lithuania undertook to shut down the nuclear reactor of the INPP Central - Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, (which it did after 26-year career, December 31, 2009 when at 20:00 22:40 circa.uno of the two generators of the Ignalina plant was closed at 22:54 pm (three hours after the reactor had reached its theoretical minimum power of 250 MW has been completely put out of service) Central but met the 70% of domestic demand in the country and which consequently led to an increase in sale of gas demand that is expected to grow by up to 75%, since the electricity will then be produced in gas-fired plants. The Russia is implementing several projects to increase their independence in the export of gas, thus avoiding transit "host countries". The project "North Stream" is a clear example of this policy: stipulates that Russian gas is transported through a dedicated pipeline length of 1,200 kilometers, which runs along the bottom of the Baltic Sea from the Russian city of Vyborg (which overlooks the Bay of Finland) to the town of Greifswald in north-east of Germany.
early as 2011, Russia plans to carry along this pipe up to 55 billion cubic meters of gas to Western Europe. E 'already provided for, inter alia, that this gas pipeline is extended to Sweden, the Netherlands, and Britain. The project sees Gazprom as a partner (by Russia) and E. ON - BASF (German side).
not to overlook the fact that Gazprom and E. ON hold 76% of the main gas distribution companies in Lithuania, Lietuvos Dujos.
But the big project "North Stream Gas Pipeline" will reduce the system further Lithuanian energy security because Russia will be able to skip Lithuania to transport its gas to the west arriving in Kaliningrad.
The project "North Stream" was developed as an alternative to the existing "Amber Gas Pipeline" that would have extended even to Poland and Latvia, Lithuania as well as the same. The pipeline
"Amber" would surely have increased certainty in the Lithuanian energy sector, not only because it would have been a second channel for import natural gas (although by the same Russian origin), but it was also a journey into the waters of the Baltic Sea belonging to Lithuania, the Russian natural gas.
The Oil
If we look at the fuel oil sector, we can say that Lithuania is less exposed to risks in relation to gas, however, the limited scope for imports from other trading partners remains the most difficult problem to solve at present the country can import oil (land) only by Russia. For a long time the oil has traveled through the refinery naphtha Mazeikiu single pipeline to transport fuel oil to the country, however, Russia has decommissioned the transport through this channel in 1996 and Lithuania was seen then forced to procure fuel from marine terminal to Bûtingė.
Depending on the weather conditions present, a quantity of between eight and ten million tons of fuel oil can be imported into Lithuania through this channel, an amount that fully meet the domestic needs of the Baltic country. Although Bûtingė was built as a precaution to avoid possible service interruptions in the supply of oil, now is the only terminal located fuel oil imported into Lithuania. (Actually there is also Klaipeda, overlooking the Baltic port formerly known as Memel during the German occupation, but is better suited to imports of petroleum products rather than import of crude oil).
Thus, while Lithuania has also other possible sources of supply of oil, one of the biggest challenges is to try to expand exports through the oil terminal of Bûtingė so that Mazeikiu Nafta, the only refinery in the country and the Baltic States can work at full capacity to ensure an increase in exports of "refined".
Variable Electrical
The problem largest in the country's energy sector and in particular in the electricity sector is the absolute dependence of the network (transmission), which includes Belarus, Latvia, Estonia and the Russian part of Karelia, the regions of St. Petersburg and Kaliningrad. If you stop the supply of energy from this channel, Lithuania would not have alternatives to import electricity from the west, because this is an integral part of the East-European electricity system that has not yet been integrated into the Western European energy grid.
In order to further reduce this dependence and heavy, Lithuania, like Estonia and Latvia, aims to connect with the world's largest energy system: UCTE (Union for the Coordination and Transmission of Electricity), which
(Fig.01: area of \u200b\u200bsynchronous networks in Europe. Source Wikipedia)
includes 24 European countries, although the systemic inclusion in this network is rather complicated. To date none of the three planned power lines (and that they should connect to the electrical system of interchange of Finland and Sweden, as energy bridge with Poland) has been completed.
Hopes and signals
Threats and challenges are in front of Lithuanian politics and especially the newly-elected President Mrs. Dalia Grybauskaite that seems more open to dialogue with the "former Soviet invaders" from the previous administration pro-American. The Russians, meanwhile holding a power not indifferent to the whole of Europe, as in the recent past tensions between Moscow and Kiev show in abundance, have the power to leave much of the old continent to the chill of winter just by closing the gas valve.
The energy security of Lithuania, however, could be optimized with three actions that complement each other.
First, implement projects for the construction of new pipelines for transporting gas and fuel oil would give the country the freedom to choose a new supplier.
Second, the increased efficiency in the use of energy resources consumed in Lithuania would lead to a decrease energy demand.
Third, with the expansion of the network connection of energy systems of Lithuania to Western Europe, could ensure the imports in the event of an outage on the Russian side.
Until recently everything looked like an impossible task, but 2007 was a turning point. New projects that were only "rumors" have been in the pipeline and are gaining momentum despite the economic difficulties of recent months.
hopes more of Lithuania related to the oil sector depend on the creation of the pipeline Odessa-Brody-Plock-Gdansk would make feasible the import of black gold from the Ukrainian port on the Black Sea and in the future also from the southern Caucasus and Central Asia, those closely linked to the electricity sector on the one hand instead rely on nuclear power (radical reconstruction or replacement of the Ignalina nuclear power plant - closed in Dec. 2009 INPP). The construction of a new nuclear plant would make it nearly free Lithuania from Russian dominance, meeting domestic needs for the whole of the Baltic country (there would need to increase in the amount of natural gas from Russia to produce electricity).
At the moment the situation is as follows:
five foreign bidders were included in the shortlist to become strategic investors in the project of constructing new nuclear power plant in Lithuania. In All were in twenty-five for proposals and expressions of interest for the operation, an unexpected number estimates made by the Ministry of Energy Sea.
The names of five candidates (shortlisted) are kept secret and the only information leaked is that they are listed companies and that all meet the strict criteria that NATO and the EU to impose this type of agreement. The lucky five will now have access to more detailed information about the project in order to calibrate the system to better their offers. Only two bidders will be chosen by the end of this summer and the "prevailing party" will be offered to acquire a controlling interest of 50% plus participation in the project "Central N"
The Lithuanian government has in mind to share the remainder of the property with Latvia, Estonia and Poland. The plant to be built in the same area of \u200b\u200bthe Russian technology to recently abandoned due to be completed and operational in a period of time between 2018 and 2020. The cost of a single reactor would cost about 3-5 billion euros
Proper interconnection of Lithuanian power system in Western Europe, as mentioned several times in this article, in this case would be the icing on the cake toward independence from Russia that would come in very late with respect to independence policy won after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
The Gas remains the most vulnerable sector, although we have talked in the past of LNG terminals (which would be able to receive, store and distribute large quantities of natural gas in liquid) and then no step in this direction was done in practice.
energy policies of the EU at this point are critical to energy security of Lithuania. First of all we hope for support from Brussels for the various projects involving the development of the trans-European interconnection networks, this could encourage political and economic exchange and expansion of energy links between EU countries.
As a second effect, a support political European Union member countries could help youngsters to have a stronger bargaining power to Russia remains the leading supplier of energy resources for the continent.
Finally, in times of crisis, recession, stagnation or full development of the energy policy of a country is crucial, if the Lithuanian told in this article should make us reflect on what actions to take on our politicians (or not taken) today will have profound and lasting impact on the fate of the territory, economy and future generations.
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