TALLINN - Eesti Raudtee (Estonian Railway) said it would probably have to resort to legal action to remove a ban on its U.S.-built locomotives from entering the Pechory station in Russia, head of the rail company's supervisory council said last week.
"Negotiations over this matter continue but will in all likelihood be settled through a legal process rather than an agreement," Edward Burkhardt, chairman of the council of Baltic Rail Service, which owns a majority of Estonian Railway, said on Aug. 13.
In Burkhardt's opinion, the Russian side violated existing protocols between Estonian Railway and Russian Railways when it withdrew permission for the U.S.-built locomotives to enter the Pechory terminal.
Estonian Railway has brought this to the attention of Russian Railways, Burkhardt said.
To keep operations moving, the rail company has temporarily leased locomotives to operate between Pechory, about half a kilometer from the border, and the first station on the Estonian side of the border.
Estonian Railway will also soon decide whether to rehabilitate old Russian locomotives still in its ownership to carry out the run to Pechory.
Closing the Pechory terminal to U.S.-built locomotives has reduced the capacity of Estonian Railway and increased its costs, which will inevitably result in the need to increase prices to the firm's customers, Burkhardt noted.
Estonian Railway said it regarded Russia's decision as a political move against Estonia, as the U.S. locomotives had operated without problems to Pechory for a number of months.
"We believe it is no coincidence that this action coincides with an effort by certain Russian interests to gain access to our railway infrastructure at below-cost prices," Burkhardt said.
The Russian side justified the ban on U.S. locomotives with increased track maintenance costs, Estonian Railway said last month.
Russia at the start of July forbade Estonian Railway's locomotives, which were imported from the United States, to enter the country via Pechory as a result of which the rail company was forced to temporarily lease locomotives to cover the 500-meter stretch of track.
The leased locomotives are coupled with freight trains in Russian territory and replaced at Estonia's Orava station.
More than one-third of the goods arriving in Estonia are shipped through Pechory.
