The most important and very significant thing is that the volume of available electricity generation capacities in Latvia is greater than the actual demand. This means that in situations with adverse weather conditions or equipment failures, we have relatively many installations capable of covering the demand, said Gunars Valdmanis, Director of the Energy Market Department of the Ministry of Climate and Energy, in the TV24 program “Person of the Day,” writes LA.LV.
He explained: “When it comes to the largest capacities that are important for the stability of energy supply, these are the Riga thermal power plants. Here, operators are required to take a very responsible approach and ensure timely fuel supplies — in particular, natural gas purchased from suppliers that align with Latvia's foreign policy guidelines and are not connected to aggressor countries.”
According to the expert, the key tasks to prevent potential disruptions in energy supply are maintaining reserves, well-thought-out long-term contracts, financial instruments that cover costs, and the ability to keep equipment operational at competitive prices.
Overall, he stated that after disconnecting from the Russian energy network, Latvia's energy security has become higher than ever before for a very good reason: now Latvia, together with other Baltic countries, does not need to share critical operational information about the system's functioning with others — all “security gaps” have been eliminated.
“We have eliminated a situation where not-so-friendly neighbors could see the operation of our system and, in the event of malicious actions, interfere. This security element has elevated the situation of electrical safety in the Baltics to a completely new level — the highest we have achieved so far as an independent state,” Valdmanis assured.
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