A gas interconnection was created for the first time between Estonia and Finland as Balticconnector was filled with gas

As of today, the submarine part of the Estonian-Finnish gas interconnection has been filled with natural gas, as a result of which, in the first time in history, the gas systems of the two countries were connected and the potential for bidirectional gas transport has been created.

The submarine pipeline, installed this summer, was emptied of air by using nitrogen on Tuesday, filled with natural gas on Wednesday, and as of today, pressure in the 14,000 cubic meter pipeline has been increased to the minimum working pressure, i.e. 30 bar. The Estonian overland section of Balticconnector was already filled with gas by 23 October and it took two days to fill the 21,000 cubic meter pipeline.

In the next few weeks, testing will commence on the Estonian-Finnish-Latvian gas interconnection and Balticconnector will be at the disposal of the market by 1 January next year, as planned.

The length of the submarine part of Balticconnector from Paldiski to Inkoo in Finland is 77 kilometres. The length of the overland part of the pipeline in Estonia is 55 kilometres, and in Finland, the length is 21 kilometres. The Estonian-Latvian gas interconnection became bidirectional in the course of reconstruction work.

The Estonian-Finnish gas interconnection along with reinforcing the interconnection between Estonia and Latvia costs approximately 300 million euros and the European Union co-finances the project with more than 200 million euros.

Thanks to Balticconnector, the security of supply of natural gas will increase in Finland, Estonia, and the rest of the Baltic States. It also serves to create a gas market encompassing Finland and the Baltic States, bringing about increased competition and better prices for consumers. Furthermore, integration with the European Union single market will improve once the GIPL (Gas Interconnection Poland-Lithuania) is completed.