The Baltic States will procure up to 20 regional trains for the Rail Baltica railway, ERR reports. Estonia will buy 5-7 trains, Latvia up to 5 trains, and Lithuania up to 8 trains, which will operate on domestic routes only, at least initially. The trains will have around 200 seats and will run at maximum…
Latvia’s GDP totalled EUR 9.9bn at current prices in the first quarter of 2026, according to data from the Central Statistical Bureau (CSP), LSM reported. Compared to the same period of 2025, the GDP rose by 2.5% at constant prices, according to seasonally and calendar non-adjusted data. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, the…
Estonia’s national transmission system operator, Elering, has postponed plans to build a fourth electricity interconnection with Latvia until after 2038, which was the project’s original completion date, ERR reports. Earlier, Elering postponed a decision on the construction of a third undersea electricity connection to Finland. Reigo Kebja, board member at Elering, said that final investment…
A report of the Latvian government’s internal review commission on the progress of the Rail Baltica railway project has revealed that the state-owned company, Eiropas Dzelzcela Linijas, failed to consult independent experts on important decisions, LETA and LSM reported. The commission report analysed two suspended construction projects on a railway bridge across the Daugava river…
Latvia’s Competition Council concluded seven high-priority cases on violations of and non-compliance with competition law in 2025, LSM reports. Total fines issued in the cases amounted to EUR 2.5mn, according to the council’s annual report. The public benefit increased by around 25% over a year, the Competition Council estimated. The biggest sanctions included a EUR…
The municipal government of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, will draw up a new citywide development plan, ERR reports. The previous plan was completed in 2001. In the next 25 years, Tallinn did urban planning by city district. The new plan will focus on developing urban space, including transport networks, educational institution networks, and district centres. Tallinn’s…
The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, has passed a law on the establishment of a new national concert hall, the Riga Philharmonic, LETA reports. The law designates the concert hall with the status of an object of national interest. The plan is to build the concert hall by reconstructing and expanding the Riga Congress Centre. The…
Latvia’s construction output rose by 9% over a year in 2025, according to the Central Statistical Bureau’s (CSP) calendar-adjusted data at constant prices, LSM reports. Construction of buildings increased by 1.2%, civil engineering structures by 25.7%, and specialised construction activities by 2.9%. In the fourth quarter of 2025, construction output increased by 9.9% from a…
Latvia’s Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) has questioned more than 60 people as part of a criminal investigation into the implementation of the Rail Baltica railway project, LETA reports. The Prosecutor General’s Office initiated criminal proceedings over possible unlawful actions by officials responsible for the project back in December 2024. The officials, including politicians,…
