Category Archives: Lithuania

My LRT.lt Lithuania interview: As Baltic states quit Russia’s grid, someone’s cutting their undersea cables & pipes | Baltics: Beware German-style overdependence on variable renewables

Posted on April 9, 2025 | Leave a comment
Credit: Vėjo jėgainė | J. Stacevičiaus / LRT nuotr.

My gratitude to LRT.lt journalist Vaida Kalinkaitė-Matuliauskienė for this in-depth print interview. We spoke just after Baltic states had disconnected from the Russian-Belarus electrical grid, BRELL, and had connected with the European grid. This was a complex and costly project, executed rapidly and flawlessly. [My comment continue below, after the English (first link) and Lithuanian (second link) versions:]

If you had stayed in BRELL, it would have been much easier for Russia
[a Google translation PDF]12 Mar 2025 — Of course, this zone is not only yours, it is connected to the European Union (EU). Thomas O’Donnell | Warsaw Conference “Energy Security in the Middle and… || LRThttps://www.lrt.lt › Verslas ||

jeigu būtumėte likę BRELL, Rusijai būtų daug lengviau
12 Mar 2025 — Žinoma, ši zona ne tik jūsų, ji sujungta su Europos Sąjunga (ES). Thomas O’Donnell | Varšuvos konferencijos „Energetinis saugumas Vidurio ir… || LRThttps://www.lrt.lt › Verslas || Translate this

The Baltic states’ impetus was obvious: a deep mistrust of Russia after its 2022 cutoff of half of all European gas imports intended to pressure EU states to abandon solidarity with Ukraine as Russia invaded it. So, switching to the European grid is a great relief. However, the dangers haven’t ended.

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Posted in Baltic States, Ehergiewende, Energy and Environment, Energy and Geopolitics, Energy crisis, energy transition, energy war, Estonia, Euroepen Union, Finaland, gas crisis, Germany, green deal, Lithuania, natural gas, norway, nuclear energy, Nuclear power, Russia, Three Seas, Ukraine war, Uncategorized

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Our Gdansk chat: Baltic energy risks | USA ousting China from post-war order | “Transition” will be simple: nuclear & mass-transit. “Critical” minerals overblown | EU’s failing model: all-renewables, new grids, grid-storage & EVs | Poland’s risk: China uses Russia

Posted on February 7, 2025 | Leave a comment

This is in English, after Eugene Romer of Układ Sił media introduces me in Polish. This was at the “3 Seas -1 Opportunity Forum” in Gdansk, last June 4-5, 2024. I have been wanting to post it ever since, as the questions remain relevant. My thanks to Eugene and his team, and to his Opportunity Think Tank colleagues.

My panel at the forum was on problems of relying on energy security that arrives via the sea. So, think Poland and Lithuania’s LNG terminals, of the many sub-sea pipelines, power and communications cables between Baltic and Nordic states. And, since June, all the incidents where ships leaving Russian ports “accidentally” dragged their anchors, cutting such vital links. So, this conference was rather prescient. My sincere thanks to our hosts The Opportunity Institute for Foreign Affairs.

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Posted in Baltic States, Ehergiewende, Energiewende, Energy and Environment, Energy and Geopolitics, Energy crisis, energy transition, EU gas, Euroepen Union, Finland, gas, gas crisis, Germany, Lithuania, LNG, NATO, natural gas, nuclear energy, Poland, Putin, Renewables, Russia, Sanctions, The USA, Three Seas, Trump, U.S. oil, Ukraine, Ukraine war, Uncategorized, USA

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My interview at Lithuania’s LRT: Trump could seriously harm Russia if he wants to | Trumpas, jeigu tik norėtų, galėtų stipriai pakenkti Rusijai

Posted on January 15, 2025 | 1 comment

My long print interview at Lithuania’s LRT [Lithuanian PDF | English PDF​] with Aleksandra ​Ketlerienė, deputy editor-in-chief of Lithuania’s LRT.lt, published 7January. We spoke in Warsaw, 19 November. My thanks to Aleksandra for her insightful questioning and editorial care. We discussed:

  • The EU’s systemic energy​-policy “own goals” ​since its initial energy-crisis win ​after Moscow began cutting gas exports early in 2021​.
  • Reforming failed/ineffective Russian price-cap sanctions for real sanctions, and how the global oil market is now favorable for “maximum pressure.”
  • Historical perspectives on oil, gas, renewables, and nuclear sectors, essential for realistic policy formation.
  • An historical overview of China’s decades-long effort to overcome its energy security, learning lessons of Japan’s WW2 weaknesses.
  • (​See topics summary))
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Posted in China, Ehergiewende, Energiewende, Energy and Environment, Energy and Geopolitics, Energy crisis, energy transition, energy war, EU gas, Euroepen Union, gas crisis, Gazprom, gazprom, geopolitics, German deindustrialization, German Green Party, Global Oil Market, Global Oil system, green deal, hydrogen, Interview, Lithuania, LNG, natural gas, Nord Stream, Nord Stream 2, nuclear energy, OPEC, opec-plus, Poland, Renewables, Russia, Sanctions, Saudi Arabia, The USA, Three Seas, Trump, U.S. oil, Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine war, Uncategorized, USA, War

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