section_path: History
section_name: History
paragraph_text: History
  
  The electricity systems of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were technologically integrated into the IPS/UPS grid in the early 1960s, during the Soviet occupation of the Baltic States. In 2001, the BRELL Agreement was signed between Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania on the technical management of the synchronization of their power grids as part of the IPS/UPS power distribution system. Nevertheless, IPS/UPS is largely managed centrally from Moscow.
  
  In 2007, the three Baltic states applied to join ENTSO-E (then UCTE) and began technical feasibility studies on joining the European synchronous power network. The synchronization project allows the three Baltic states to regain full control of their electricity networks and strengthen their energy security. According to the European Commission, the synchronization of Baltic states is a political and financial priority and therefore it has allocated more than €1.2 billion towards the funding of the project. Some of the facilities include new powerlines, batteries, and nine synchronous condensers.