Energy supply: Lithuania no longer needs gas from Russia

For years, Lithuania has worked to free itself from its dependence on gas on Russia – with success. However, it is debatable whether the new liquefied petroleum gas terminal will be sufficient to supply Baltic neighbors.

Clapeta is the largest port in Lithuania. The country has invested a lot of money here in recent years: in 2014, a large liquefied gas terminal came into operation. The floating facility is located on the 300-meter-long ship, which is aptly named “Freedom”.

“It’s very simple: the gas is transported to our terminal in a liquid state with a temperature of minus 170 degrees,” said Mintagos Navigas, director of the government agency. “There it is heated and distributed in normal condition. So it goes into ordinary pipes, from which the consumers get their regular gas.”

Distribution from different countries

Three ships come here each month, mostly from the United States or Norway, but also from other countries. This has led to lower gas prices in recent years as Lithuania has been able to negotiate not only with Russia but also with many suppliers.

Nevertheless, critics considered the liquefied gas system to be large and expensive. But supporters like energy expert Romas Swedes objected: it’s not just about money. Swedes is a researcher at Vilnius University and was the Deputy Minister of Energy a few years ago. “In 2010, Lithuania’s energy security situation was critical. Russia’s dependence on a single external supplier was up to 80 percent,” he says. “After the closure of a nuclear power plant, Lithuania was on an isolated energy island in Europe and it became clear to everyone that it needed to be replaced urgently.”

Gas imports from Russia stopped

Lithuania’s Ministry of Energy recently announced that it has not purchased any gas from Russia since early April. President Gitanas Nausėda appealed to other EU countries to copy Lithuania. The president said on Twitter that gas imports from Russia had funded the war in Ukraine.

“We will have large shipping supplies by the end of this year, thus meeting our needs and the needs of our neighbors,” said the country’s current energy minister, Danius Greaves. “I want to emphasize that our previous governments were well prepared for this situation. That is why we can remain calm today.”

Providing the Baltic States as a target

Meeting the needs of neighboring countries – through which he supplies to the other two Baltic states, Estonia and Latvia. There are various estimates as to whether this will really be a success in the coming winter. An expert on Lithuanian television has expressed concern that the liquid gas terminal may not be used at full capacity for long periods of time. In the recent winter, this can lead to problems. In addition, the floating liquefied petroleum gas plant is connected to Finland and Poland from May and serves both these markets.

Latvia plans to vote in parliament this week on halting Russian gas imports. Latvia does not currently have access to gas from Russia as pipelines connecting the two countries are being repaired – this was reported by Latvian television. The well-stocked gas storage facility in the country ensures the distribution of the region. Estonia, on the other hand, has announced that it intends to run a liquefied petroleum gas terminal with Finland – which should be ready in the fall.