EU gets ready for Russian attacks on power grids after Ukraine’s winter of blackouts – POLITICO

“It’s not a huge amount of money,” said Latvia’s energy minister, Kaspars Melnis. “But it’s something. And it’s important support.”

For Latvia, the seriousness of the threat became evident following an attack on the EstLink 2 undersea cable linking the Baltics to Finland in late 2024, which drove up the cost of electricity imports from Finland. “That was the first cold shower for us — that something could happen to our critical infrastructure,” Melnis said.

A six-month hunt for spare parts delayed the repair of that cable, prompting Latvia to begin stockpiling components and maintaining backup energy infrastructure in preparation for future attacks, he said.

“After EstLink 2, we understood: Spare parts are sometimes even more important than protection. If something happens, you must fix it immediately,” he said. “You cannot protect every meter of cable. But you must be ready to rebuild it as fast as possible.”

Security has already been beefed up. NATO patrols now monitor EstLink 2 at sea, while Latvia and Lithuania have installed an anti-drone system at critical points on their grids, their energy ministers said. All three Baltic countries have severed grid connections with Russia and Belarus and boosted connectivity with Poland.

Finland, meanwhile, has spent years bulking up its power networks, boosting renewables, burying power cables underground, increasing imports of liquefied natural gas and tightening energy ties with neighbors.