The Latvian government should seek to reduce the costs of the Rail Baltica railway project, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis stated, LETA reports. Speaking in an interview with Latvijas Radio, Dombrovskis pointed out that not everything could be financed with EU funds. He said that part of the project should be financed from…
Latvia’s Ministry of Transport has proposed that passengers travelling on the Rail Baltica railway will have to change trains to transfer from Riga Central Station to Riga International Airport, LETA reports. Under the plan, Riga Central Station would be connected to the airport via a standard-gauge (1,520 mm) railway line. The ministry argued that building…
Lithuania plans to allocate more than 3% of its GDP to defence, President Gitanas Nauseda announced, BNS reports. Speaking during a joint press conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw, Nauseda said that Lithuania would follow Poland’s example of raising defence spending. Also, he said that the two countries would soon begin training Ukrainian…
Latvia’s Riga International Airport (RIX) has begun drawing up a 40-year “master plan” and a strategic environmental impact assessment, LSM reports. RIX has contracted Spanish engineering and consultancy company Ineco and Latvian environmental engineering services company VentEko to develop the plan over the next 18 months. The master plan will include guidelines for the airport’s…
The Estonian-Finnish undersea power cable, EstLink 2, will resume operations after repairs on 4 September 2024, BNS reports. The power interconnection was shut down due to a fault in late January 2024. The repairs involved replacing around 300 metres of cable and connection joints. Shore reinforcement and surface works and removal of temporary structures will…
Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina urged European countries to “resist Russian evil,” saying that this would help increase security and prosperity in the continent, LSM reports. Speaking at the European Political Community (EPC) summit in the UK, Silina called on Europe to provide more military, financial, and political support to Ukraine. She said that European…
The European Commission will allocate an additional EUR 1.2bn of EU funds for the construction of the Rail Baltica railway, the project’s coordinator, RB Rail, announced, LSM reports. Of the sum, around EUR 370mn will go to Estonia, EUR 346mn to Latvia, and EUR 458mn to Lithuania. Together with national co-financing, total available funding will…
Internet connection speeds in Estonia are among the slowest in the entire EU, ERR reports. According to DELFI, Estonia ranks 26th out of all 27 EU member states by the share of households with internet connections of at least 100 mbps. While 76% of houses have high-speed broadband available, only 35.5% of Estonian households are…
Lithuania’s Klaipeda State Seaport plans to begin the construction of a new cruise ship terminal in 2024, BNS reports. The terminal will be located near the port city’s Winter Harbour area. The port has opened tendering to select the construction contractor. The new terminal complex will also include a new office building for the port…