Finland investigates Russian ship after power outage

Getty Images Pylon and wires at Estlink 2 substation in Porvoo, FinlandGetty Images

Estlink 2 substation in Porvoo, Finland

Finnish police are investigating whether a Russian ship was involved in the sabotage of an electricity cable running between Finland and Estonia.

Authorities said Thursday they believe the anchor on the Eagle S, a tanker registered in the Cook Islands, may have damaged the Estlink 2 cable, which was severed on Wednesday.

The vessel is believed to be part of Russia’s “shadow fleet”, which consists of vessels carrying embargoed Russian oil products.

It is the latest in a series of incidents in recent years in which submarine cables in the Baltic Sea area have either been damaged or severed completely.

Fingrid, the operator of Finland’s national grid, said Estlink 2 remained out of service but that the damage “did not threaten the operation of the electricity system” in the country.

Repairs are expected to take “several months.”

“From our side, we are investigating grave sabotage,” said Robin Lardot, director of Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

President Alexander Stubb wrote on X that he had received an “overview” of the cable break from the authorities.

He stressed the need to “fend off the risks” posed by ships that are part of the shadow fleet.

Finnish police have said the case is being investigated as “serious criminal mischief”.

The damaged cable had a transmission capacity of 650 megawatts and is 170 km long (105 miles), of which 145 km is submerged. The fault was located in the submarine section on Thursday.

The EU has threatened to impose further sanctions on Russia as a result of the incident, saying it is “stepping up efforts to protect undersea cables”.

“We strongly condemn any deliberate destruction of Europe’s critical infrastructure,” the European Commission and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a joint statement.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said Thursday that damage to critical submarine infrastructure has become “so frequent” that it casts doubt on whether this damage can be considered “accidental” or “just bad seamanship.”

“We must understand that damage to submarine infrastructure has become more systematic and must therefore be considered attacks against our vital structures,” Tsahkna says in a press release.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that the Eagle S has been escorted to a Finnish port.

“In addition to circumventing sanctions, the shadow fleet is a security threat in the Baltic Sea, and we cannot just sit and watch,” Tsahkna continued.

A telecommunications cable between Finland and Germany was cut in November, and an internet connection between Lithuania and Sweden’s Gotland Lake stopped working at about the same time.

German prosecutors are still investigating the explosion of the Nord Stream gas pipeline between Russia and Germany in 2022.

And in October 2023, a natural gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was seriously damaged.

Finnish officials later said the incident was caused by a Chinese container ship dragging its anchor.