We must be ready to protect our critical infrastructure - Valainis

RIGA - We have to be prepared for any turn of events and be ready to protect our critical infrastructure, Economics Minister Viktors Valainis (Greens/Farmers) told reporters after inspecting Riga Thermal Power Plant No. 1 on Friday.

Following to the rupture of submarine power cable EstLink 2 in the Gulf of Finland, Valainis, together with representatives of Latvenergo power utility, carried out a technical inspection of Riga thermal power plants No. 1 and 2 on Friday.

"In a normal situation, we would not be here today," said Valainis.

The damage to the EstLink 2 cable shows that Latvenergo infrastructure is becoming increasingly important for balancing the electricity market, said Valainis. This infrastructure must be operational under all conditions, he stressed.

Valainis and Latvenergo management today discussed the need to improve protection of Latvenergo infrastructure.

Commenting on the damaged EstLink 2 cable, Valainis pointed out that the cable had just been under repair for 10 months and electricity prices fluctuated by 10 percent during that period. Similarly, this time "we cannot rule out that something similar will happen."

As reported, the EstLink 2 electricity cable linking Estonia and Finland sustained damage on Wednesday, and it was later reported that three submarine communication cables between Estonia and Finland had also been damaged. Estlink 2 has a capacity of 650 megawatts (MW). The Estonia-Finland EstLink 1 cable with a capacity of 350 MW remains operational.