Sorainen has advised and represented Elering in two procurement disputes concerning the reconstruction of a 330 kilovolt overhead transmission line in the Viru 330 kilovolt substation and Tartu 330/110 kilovolt substation.
Elering is an independent electricity and gas system operator in Estonia.
According to Sorainen, “currently Estonia imports two-thirds of electricity, most of which is produced in Russia. To ensure the long-term security of supply and energy security, Elering is working towards joining the Baltic States energy markets strongly with the rest of Europe. This means desynchronizing the Estonian electricity system from the Unified Energy System of Russia and instead, integrating it into the European Union’s electricity system. The synchronization of the Baltic electricity networks with the continental European synchronous area is expected to be completed by December 31, 2025, after which our electricity system will be disconnected from the existing North-West Russian frequency area.”
According to Sorainen, one of the disputes concerned Elering’s decision to disqualify a tenderer due to the lack of the required qualifications and the other dispute concerned a claim to exclude the successful tenderer because the appellant was of the opinion that the winner of the tender had a disproportionate advantage as it had fulfilled a previous public procurement contract to Elering. “Therefore, the appellant was of the position that the winner had more information for making the bid.
In both cases, the court and Public Procurement Dispute Committee found that Elering’s actions had been lawful. Elering had rightfully found that one of the tenderers' qualifications were insufficient and that the tenderer winning the other public procurement had no disproportionate advantages.”
Back in 2018, Sorainen had advised Elering on a Eurobond issue (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on May 7, 2018).
Sorainen's team included Partner Carri Ginter, Senior Associates Kadri Harginen and Mario Sorm, and Associates Gerli Gritsenko.
