S&Ps downgrades Lithuania Energy

VILNIUS 's Standard & Poor'shas downgrading its corporate rating for Lietuvos Energija (Lithuanian Energy)from A- to BBB+.

The downgrade of Lietuvos Energija, an electricity transmission subsidiaryof the national energy company Leo LT, came less than a week after the ratingsagency downgraded Lithuania'ssovereign rating to BBB+.

Lietuvos Energija's long-term rating remains on watch with negativeimplications, Standard & Poor's said.

In order to take the company off the watch list, the agency has to examinethe financial position of the whole Leo LT group.

Leo LT 's which is due to implement Lithuania'smulti-billion-litas energy projects, including the planned new nuclear powerplant and possible power links with Polandand Sweden 'sowns a 96.4 percent stake in Lietuvos Energija.

The Lithuanian government,meanwhile, holds a 61.7 percent stake in Leo LT. A company controlled by the 10owners of VP Group owns the remaining 38.3 percent of the shares.

Lietuvos Energija has reported 69.1 million litas (20 million euros) inconsolidated net profits for the first nine months of this year, a rise of 77.6percent on the same time last year. Consolidated revenue for January-Septemberrose by 32.1 percent year-on-year to 1.183 billion litas.