Electricity Disconnection: A Brief Moment of Powerlessness in Finland-Estonia

On Monday, Finland’s electricity export connection to Estonia was interrupted, causing temporary issues. If it had been prolonged, it could have led to challenges for Estonia and the Baltics. However, the Estlink 1 connection was reconnected after three hours, with the fault being in the auxiliary power system of the Estonian direct current substation. This interruption occurred due to ongoing repair work on the Estlink 2 cable, which meant that Estonia was without electricity from Finland for a few hours.

On a broader scale, if the interruption had lasted longer, it could have affected the price of electricity in both Finland and the Baltics. Finland would have seen a decrease in prices as an exporter to Estonia due to excess electricity in its grid, while the Baltics would have had to compensate with their own production, leading to increased prices. The possibility of sabotage was deemed almost non-existent, and the momentary disconnection did not have a dramatic impact on Finland.

The repairing of the connection between Finland and Estonia is expected to be completed by the end of August, ensuring a stable electricity supply between the two countries.