Belarus, Russia sign agreement on Union State unified electricity market
18:00, 6 December
Photo: BelTA
Belarus and Russia have signed an interstate agreement on the formation of the united electricity market of the Union State. The document was signed by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Belarus and Russia in Minsk on 6 December, BelTA has learned.
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As State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev said prior to the session of the Supreme State Council, the parties will finalize the work on the formation of a single energy market of the Union State. “When the commission started its work in December 2018, it was hard to believe that it would be possible to reach an interstate agreement in such a short period of time. This is to ensure a different level of energy security of Belarus, a mutually beneficial solution for the energy sectors of our countries,” Dmitry Mezentsev said.
According to him, it is “a mutually beneficial agreement, which will let the parties minimize losses in the power grid, balance tariffs, and ensure the mutual flow of energy for the sake of people, for the sake of budget replenishment”. It is also the result of the commissioning of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, the formation of the system of relations, which is based on the foundation of greater trust, and equal consideration of each other's interests, he added.
Energy Minister Aleksei Kushnarenko told the media that the united electricity market will be formed in stages, taking into account the parallel operation of the two energy systems with their technological and organizational features. It will function on the basis of rules that have already been developed and are undergoing the approval procedure, which, according to the minister, will be completed tentatively in the first half of 2025. “At this stage, all relationships will be built through authorized grid operators. They will be determined both from the Belarusian and Russian sides,” the minister said.
“The main principle here is equality and mutual benefit. Undoubtedly, the signing of this agreement will serve to increase the reliability of energy supply, energy security of Belarus, Russia and the Union State in general,” Aleksei Kushnarenko said.
The ultimate goal of the two countries is to unite all energy markets, both gas and electricity, which was stipulated in the Union State Treaty back in 1999.
