Following the publication of the conclusion of the State Energy Regulatory Council's (SERC) investigation into the GIPL interconnectors, the assessment of Amber Grid's liability must be inseparable from the actions of the project's contractor, who deliberately and intentionally misled Amber Grid.
"The Building Technical Regulation and the GIPL contract clearly state that the contractor is responsible for compliance and documentation of the details. Given this legal responsibility of the contractor, in order to protect the interests of the company and consumers, we must ensure that the non-compliant parts of the pipeline are replaced at the contractor's expense," says Nemunas Biknius, CEO of Amber Grid.
"We hope that the replacement of the non-compliant parts will not affect the consumers or the company's finances, which is also emphasised in the conclusions of the SERC inspection," says Mr Biknius, "However, some of the statements made in the SERC's conclusions do not fully correspond to the facts from the company's point of view, which is why Amber Grid plans to appeal the SERC's decision in court.
"An internal investigation carried out at Amber Grid's initiative found that the contractor, Alvora, had failed to carry out its duties properly. The company itself found that some of the interconnectors did not have the appropriate certificates and therefore referred the matter to the Public Prosecutor's Office.
"Amber Grid had previously decided to replace the interconnectors without proper certificates at the contractor's expense. To this end, a bank guarantee has been obtained from the contractor, Alvora, public tender documents are being prepared to select a new contractor to replace the components, and a schedule of works is being planned.
The GIPL pipeline has been operating safely and reliably for two years. During this period, no technical indicators have been recorded that would call into question the safe operation of the pipeline. Between the start of GIPL operations in May 2022 and April 2024, the pipeline transported 16.2 TWh in both directions, which is 8% more than Lithuania's gas consumption in 2023.
