Grid integration boosts EU links with Ukraine

Abstract

EU countries import 90 per cent of their fossil gas needs, and more than 40 per cent of that is from Russia. As Russia continues its internationally denounced invasion of Ukraine, those imports have become an extremely contentious issue. The European Commission has set out its plan to slash gas imports and even phase them out before 2030. A lot of the weaning off will be done by replacing Russian imports with LNG from other countries. Although the EC does not want to tinker yet with its plan to source 40 per cent of the EU's energy from renewable sources by 2030, it is urging governments to 'front-load' deployment of wind and solar power. Essentially, Brussels does not want countries to get complacent and wait until the second half of the decade to pump serious money into renewables. Under existing plans, the EU wanted to see 30 million energy-efficient heat pumps installed by 2030, which would save around 35 bcm of gas. Ukraine successfully decoupled its power grid from the Russian network with no obvious problems. The next milestone is full synchronisation. It could prove to be a fundamentally important step in Ukraine's war effort, as linking grids would enable the country to get emergency power from the west if Russian military operations press on and damage electricity systems.