Lithuania’s electricity transmission system operator, Litgrid, has announced the procurement of three 220 kV controlled shunt reactors for the construction of the Harmony Link interconnection. To date, Lithuania has only one such electrical device in operation, designed for 330 kV voltage and reactive power control within the transmission network. The controlled shunt reactors will be installed at the new Gižai transformer substation, where the second overland electricity interconnection with Poland, Harmony Link, will commence. Due to lengthy equipment delivery lead times, the procurement process for the shunt reactors is being carried out before completion of the Gižai transformer substation design phase.
“In order to ensure the smooth and timely implementation of the Harmony Link overland interconnection project with Poland, we are preparing well in advance. Controlled shunt reactors are intended for voltage regulation within the electricity transmission system – one of the key parameters in operating the power system. These 220 kV devices will be the first of their kind in the Baltic States, as this is the voltage level used in the Polish and wider continental European grids,” said Andrius Šemeškevičius, Chief Executive Officer of Litgrid.
An international tender has been launched for the procurement of three controlled shunt reactors rated at 220 kV and 100 MVAr reactive power. The procurement includes the manufacture, testing, delivery and installation of the reactors. The controlled shunt reactors are expected to become operational by the end of 2030, following the energisation of the 220 kV transmission line.
These devices will ensure the quality of electricity supply by regulating voltage and reactive power within the transmission network.
Lithuania currently operates one 330 kV controlled shunt reactor with 180 MVAr reactive power capacity at the Lithuanian Power Plant transformer substation. In addition to this reactor, a further 11 lower-capacity shunt reactors operate within the Lithuanian system; however, these are not adjustable and their impact is localised.
Litgrid has also already signed a contract for the procurement of three 330 kV controlled shunt reactors. One of these will be installed at the Gižai transformer substation. The other two reactors will be installed at the Darbėnai and Mūša switchyards as part of the Interconnection Reinforcement Programme, following the construction of the 330 kV electricity transmission lines Darbėnai–Varduva–Mūša and Panevėžys–Mūša.
The Harmony Link overland interconnection project in Lithuania is planned within the territories of the Vilkaviškis District, Kalvarija and Marijampolė municipalities. The project comprises the construction of a new double-circuit 220 kV alternating current electricity transmission line from the Ełk Bis substation via the Norki and Vygrių substations in Poland to the Lithuanian border, from where it will continue to the planned Gižai substation in the Vilkaviškis district. The project also includes the modernisation of the existing 220 kV Ostrołęka–Ełk Bis transmission line in Poland.
Construction works for the Harmony Link interconnection in Lithuania are scheduled to commence in the second quarter of 2027.
The Harmony Link overland interconnection project has been granted the status of a project of special national importance.
The Harmony Link project is co-financed by the European Union through the Connecting Europe Facility, with the aim of strengthening national energy security, integrating greater volumes of renewable energy resources, and ensuring capacity for commercial electricity trading following the synchronisation of the Baltic States with the continental European electricity networks.
