HELSINKI, Sept. 3 -- The EstLink 2 subsea electricity cable between Finland and Estonia has been repaired and is expected to resume operation on Wednesday, Finnish national power grid operator Fingrid announced on Tuesday.

The submarine cable has been out of operation since Jan. 26, 2024, due to a technical fault. The failure in the electricity transmission system led to higher prices in Estonia and, in turn, reduced the electricity spot prices in Finland, as producers were unable to sell power on the Estonian market, according to a report by Finnish national broadcaster Yle on Tuesday.

Fingrid said the repair work, carried out in cooperation with Estonia's grid operator Elering and the cable's manufacturer, has progressed as planned. The damaged section of the cable has been replaced with a new 300-meter-long submarine cable.

Tests to ensure the cable's operation began on Monday and will continue Tuesday. The cable is set to return to commercial use from Wednesday.

According to Fingrid, the failure temporarily reduced the electricity transmission capacity between Finland and Estonia by 650 megawatts.

EstLink 2, which is one of several submarine electricity transmission links between Finland and Estonia, started commercial operations in 2014. The cable spans about 170 km and plays a crucial role in integrating the Baltic and Nordic energy markets and securing power supply in both regions.

  - Xinhua