Most large and medium-sized companies in the Baltic States plan to invest in business development in 2026, according to a Kantar survey for OP Corporate Bank, LSM reports. The survey showed that 87% of enterprises in Lithuania, 85% in Latvia, and 74% in Estonia plan to invest in development. Specifically, Lithuanian companies plan to increase…
The Estonian government has allocated a record EUR 185mn of EU funds for renovating apartment buildings, ERR reports. Infrastructure Minister Vladimir Svet said that another EUR 80-90mn would be available for renovations annually over the next three years. The state will thus provide altogether almost EUR 500mn of support through various instruments for apartment building…
US electric car maker Tesla has opened its first pop-up store in Lithuania, BNS reports. The store is located at the Akropolis shopping mall in Vilnius. The company plans to open a permanent store and service centre in Vilnius in early 2025, Invest Lithuania reported. Tesla’s Dutch arm, Tesla International, established a subsidiary in Lithuania…
Traffic issues in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, mirror challenges faced by cities in Western Europe in the 1970s, primarily due to overdependence on cars, ERR reports. Suburban sprawl, inadequate public transportation, and lack of infrastructure for alternative transport modes have increased reliance on cars for daily commutes, leading to traffic congestion and reduced accessibility. Despite…
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…
Latvia ranks highest in the Baltic States in achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals, according to the UN’s Sustainable Development Report 2024, LSM reports. Latvia ranked 13th in the sustainable development index, which was up from 14th place in 2023. Estonia ranked 15th, while Lithuania was on 31st place. Latvia’s overall score on the index…
The Estonian government has approved draft legislation to introduce an annual car tax and a vehicle registration fee, ERR reports. Under the plan, the new law will enter into force as of 2025. The amount of the car tax and the registration fee will depend on the vehicle’s emissions and age as well as weight…
The Latvian government, which took office in September 2023, has approved a plan of action, LSM reports. The plan foresees 269 specific measures in line with the government declaration. The action plan is divided into three main priorities: “Prosperous Latvia,” “Safe Latvia,” and “Latvian and inclusive Latvia.” All state institutions must submit reports on the…
Almost two thirds of residents in Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, prefer to drink tap water, according to a Norstat LT poll for the municipal water supplier, Vilniaus Vandenys, ELTA reports. The survey showed that 71% of Vilnius residents preferred tap water to bottled water. In a similar survey done in 2021, just 44% of Vilnius residents…