On 12 August, President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs met with Minister of Climate and Energy Kaspars Melnis. The President of Latvia and the Minister discussed the impact of the storm of 29 July on energy infrastructure, synchronisation of the Baltic State electricity grid with Europe, as well as the elaboration of a long-term strategy for the energy sector.
During the meeting, the President of Latvia stressed the need to agree as quickly as possible on the procedure of wind farm payments for the development of local communities, which is already envisioned in the law. “People in the regions of Latvia often worry about the impact that these projects will have on their properties, the landscape and the environment. I urge the Ministry of Climate and Energy to engage in this discussion and explain the issues that are unclear to the local residents. Likewise, it is necessary to come to an agreement as soon as possible regarding the already envisioned mechanism by which local residents will see tangible benefits and investments into the development of the local community, whilst providing opportunities for wind farm developers to implement projects in a timely manner and increase energy production capacities in the region,” President Rinkēvičs said.
Minister Melnis informed the President of Latvia about the elaboration of the energy sector strategy. The President of Latvia highlighted that he expects a draft long-term strategy for the energy sector to be done by autumn of this year.
The President of Latvia thanked the competent agencies that took part in repairing electrical outages following the storm of 29 July, and urged for an assessment to be done regarding the actions needed to improve readiness. The officials discussed the need to review current regulations in order to reduce future risks of extensive power outages, for example, by stipulating the width of protection zones around high-voltage line, especially in wooded areas.
