Funding for implementation of Rail Baltica project in Latvia is sufficient for several more years - Silina

RIGA - Funding for implementation of the Rail Baltica railroad project in Latvia is sufficient for several more years, Prime Minister Evika Silina (New Unity) said in an interview with Latvian Radio on Thursday.

At the moment, work is under way on designing Rail Baltica section toward Estonia, said Silina.

According to Silina, it is now clear that European Union funds have been reallocated to complete reconstruction of Riga Central Rail Station and the rail station at Riga Airport. The government, however, is yet to reach agreement on cost ceilings. At present, Latvia's estimated costs are the highest, but the government's position is to be "in the middle between Lithuania and Estonia," therefore it is necessary to agree on the overall cost limits of the project, Silina explained.

"It is more or less clear that one part will definitely be funded through the Connecting Europe Facility, and then there is the potential to attract private-public partnership funding," said Silina.

As reported, according to the Baltic joint venture RB Rail, the cost of the first phase of Rail Baltica in the Baltics could reach EUR 14.3 billion, of which EUR 5.5 billion in Latvia, but there are potential savings of up to EUR 500 million from optimizing technical solutions, as well as other savings that could be made.

The total cost of the project could reach EUR 23.8 billion in the Baltics according to the cost-benefit analysis. A previous cost-benefit analysis in 2017 estimated the total cost of the project at EUR 5.8 billion.

The Rail Baltica project will build a European standard gauge railway line from Tallinn to the Lithuanian-Polish border to connect the Baltic states with other European countries by rail. A new 870-kilometer European-standard (1,435 mm) railway line with a maximum train speed of 240 kilometers per hour will be built in the Baltic states.