More than three decades after leaving the Soviet Union, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are preparing to unplug from Russia’s electricity grid and join the EU’s network. The two-day process will begin on Saturday, with residents told to charge their devices, stock up on food and water, and prepare as if severe weather is forecast. Many have been told not to use lifts – while in some areas traffic lights will be turned off. A giant, specially-made clock will count down the final seconds before the transition at a landmark ceremony in Lithuania’s capital on Sunday, attended by EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. The three nations will then officially transition away from the so-called Brell power grid, which has connected them to Russia and Belarus since the end of World War Two. The Brell grid is controlled almost entirely by Russia and has long been seen as a vulnerability for the former Soviet republics, which are now Nato members. After disconnecting from it, the three countries will operate in “isolated mode” for about 24 hours – surviving only on their own power – before integrating into the European grid via Poland. “We are now removing Russia’s ability to use the electricity system as a tool of geopolitical blackmail,” Lithuania’s Energy Minister Zygimantas Vaiciunas said. “It’s the culmination of efforts over more than 10 years or 20 years, to reduce that energy dependence.” When the Baltic States joined the EU and Nato, everybody talked about them being an energy island that was still dependent on that joint electricity network with Belarus and Russia.
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