Estonian Finance Minister Mart Võrklaev suggested floating the company coordinating the Rail Baltica railway project, RB Rail, on the stock exchange to raise more funds amidst rising construction costs, ERR reports. Construction costs in Estonia alone are estimated at EUR 3.1bn, with EUR 1.2bn secured from EU funding. Võrklaev said that the government expected to have…
The Lithuanian government plans to invest around EUR 17.56mn in counter-mobility measures over 2024-2027, the Ministry of Defence announced, BNS reports. The plan is to deploy counter-mobility defence installations along the border with Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad (Königsberg) region by April 2025, reserve barriers on major national roads and bridges by November 2025, and drainage…
Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite has requested financial support from the EU to strengthen the protection of the country’s border with Russia, BNS reports. In a letter to EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, Bilotaite emphasised the need to modernise and update border surveillance systems, with costs estimated at nearly EUR 16mn and required…
The Latvian government made a decision in 2015 to include international railway stations at Riga Central Station and Riga International Airport (RIX) in the Rail Baltica project, according to the Ministry of Transport, LETA reports. The then government approved a plan to build the project’s most complex objects first so that they would be available…
Latvia’s Riga City Council may revise its property tax policy to address the issue of abandoned and empty shopfronts in the Old Town, LSM reports. Also, the city council has invested EUR 1.5mn in promoting Riga as a tourist destination and will launch a major redevelopment project for two streets in the Old Town to…
Lithuanian Transport Minister Marius Skuodis says EUR 1.3bn is needed to significantly improve the country’s road infrastructure, BNS reports. The current budget for road maintenance is EUR 872mn, which falls short of the necessary amount to address the deteriorating conditions, Skuodis says. The Ministry of Transport is exploring ways to provide direct funding to the…
Latvia will triple the number of average speed cameras on roads, Transport Minister Kaspars Briskens announced, LSM reports. Currently, there are average speed cameras on 16 road sections. Briskens said that the situation on Latvian roads was critical. He said that the ministry would increase focus on improving road infrastructure and enforcement of speed limits….
The planned synchronisation of the Baltic electricity grids with Western Europe in February 2025 will slightly increase electricity prices for consumers, according to Lithuanian Energy Minister Dainius Kreivys, BNS reports. The impact on prices will be minimal, around a few percent, he said. Lithuanian power grid operator Litgrid estimates that the synchronisation will cost consumers…
The ruling coalition in Latvia will review contracts and rising costs of the Rail Baltica railway project before approving any related payments, LETA reports. Following an audit of the project, the Ministry of Transport has turned to the Prosecution Office. The audit estimated that the total cost of the project had risen to EUR 23.8bn….