High-Level Meeting confirms the importance of the Transatlantic Partnership in strengthening energy security in the Baltic States and assisting Ukraine
On 1–2 March, Minister of Energy Dainius Kreivys and Vice-Minister of Energy Albinas Zananavičius participated in the meeting of the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation (P-TECC), held in Zagreb, Croatia. The meeting focused on how the Transatlantic Partnership can contribute to the resilience of the energy system in Europe and further progress towards a green transformation.
“This meeting is crucial to strengthening relations between the US and its European partners. The wide range of issues in the energy sector shows that the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation format is gaining in relevance every year. Russia’s continued aggression in Ukraine underlines once again the importance of having a common platform between allies on both sides of the Atlantic,” said Minister Kreivys.
The meeting included plenary sessions on European energy security, optimising the electricity grid, nuclear energy, geothermal energy, hydrogen technologies, green transformation, and reconstruction in Ukraine.
During the discussion, the Minister of Energy noted that optimising the electricity grid is an essential part of Lithuania’s path to energy security.
“Lithuania has already made significant progress in this area, but much remains to be done. We aim to have the Baltic electricity system synchronised with the continental European grids by 2024. From a technical point of view, the Baltic synchronisation project is not only aimed at ensuring security, but also at optimising our electricity grid to enable the timely integration of renewable energy sources,” the Minister added.
The visit also included a High-Level Meeting between US Secretary of Energy Jenniffer Granholm and the Baltic Ministers responsible for energy policy. This meeting focussed on the discussion of cooperation on the transition to renewable energy, the Baltic synchronisation project and follow-up. The US reaffirmed its support and commitment to provide full assistance to the Baltic States in making sound policy decisions to prepare for disconnection from the Russian-controlled electricity system as early as 2024. All parties agreed that in the context of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the dependence of the Baltic States on the Russian-controlled system becomes an issue of particular importance.
This is the fourth meeting of its kind between US and Baltic energy leaders to discuss regional energy security issues.
The High-Level Meeting of the Partnership for Transatlantic Cooperation in Zagreb focused on support for Ukraine, both in rebuilding damaged infrastructure and in looking ahead to Ukraine’s energy sector. On the sidelines of the event, Lithuanian Minister of Energy Kreivys and Ukrainian Minister of Energy Galushchenko had a meeting to discuss the security situation in Ukraine and Lithuania’s potential to provide the necessary assistance to the Ukrainian energy sector in response to the needs of the country. The Minister of Energy of Ukraine thanked Lithuania for its leadership in mobilising and providing support to Ukraine.
Last updated: 03-03-2023
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