If there is no significant progress in implementation of Rail Baltica by 2034, it will be more difficult to defend the project politically - Zile

RIGA - If the implementation of Rail Baltica does not make significant progress by 2034, it will be more difficult to defend the project politically, Roberts Zile (National Alliance), Vice President of the European Parliament (EP), told LETA.

He noted that other sources of funding must also be sought for the implementation of Rail Baltica, including public and private financing options. The politician did not rule out the possibility of making significant progress on the project by 2030, but emphasized that it is particularly important to ensure the project's progress through 2034, when the next European Union (EU) multiannual budget period will conclude.

According to the EP Vice President, even if the full scope of the project is not implemented by 2034, it would become politically more difficult to advocate for the project's continued implementation not only in the EP but also elsewhere. He explained that when drafting the next EU multiannual budget, covering the period from 2035 to 2041, member states advocating for cuts to EU budget spending, such as Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Finland, might oppose further funding for the project, citing its prolonged implementation.

Zile also stated that failure to complete Rail Baltica by 2030 would most likely not, in and of itself, require the repayment of EU funding that has already been allocated. He is not aware of any precedents where funding would have to be repaid in such a situation.

As reported, the Baltic states have agreed to extend the deadline for the first phase of Rail Baltica railway project to 2034, Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs (United List) told members of the press on Tuesday.

The prime minister noted that the Baltic states have drafted a final document - a statement to the European Commission (EC) - outlining the trilateral agreement among the three Baltic states to continue the Rail Baltica project.

"The project deadline, which had been set for 2030, is not realistic, and all three Baltic states have agreed on a 2034 deadline for the first phase," Kulbergs emphasized.

In the Baltic states’ declaration, the heads of government affirm the importance of Rail Baltica as a joint strategic project for European security, military mobility, connectivity, and competitiveness, and commit to working together to ensure that construction of Rail Baltica main line under the next EU multiannual financial framework proceeds as closely as possible to the agreed schedule.

The Baltic states will strive to secure EU funding for the project, maintain the EU co-financing rate at 85 percent, and create the conditions for uninterrupted construction until the start of the new EU financial programming period. Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia agreed to jointly advocate for an allocation of at least EUR 10 billion for the Rail Baltica project in the EU’s multiannual financial framework. The prime ministers also agreed to instruct each country’s transportation ministers to review the project’s costs and meet regularly to coordinate efforts to reduce them.

They also plan to collaborate to reduce project costs, improve project management, and ensure closer coordination of their actions. The leaders of the Baltic states agree that the potential of the Rail Baltica project can only be realized through a continuous cross-border rail connection linking the Baltic states with the rest of Europe.

The joint declaration of the Baltic states states that the Baltic states are committed to ensuring that the main line of Rail Baltica begins operations during the next EU multiannual financial framework period (2028-2034), while maintaining the intention to continue construction, adhering as closely as possible to the currently agreed timeline of 2030, as set forth in the European Commission’s implementing decision.

To achieve this, the project partners will commission the necessary integrated systems in a timely manner, establish their construction schedules and investment priorities, as well as each country’s commitments, in order to jointly move the project forward. This process will be closely coordinated with the EC and Poland, ensuring consistency regarding the Rail Baltica connection, financing mechanisms, comprehensive work plans, and unified implementation deadlines.

LETA also reported, the first phase of the Rail Baltica project’s main route in Latvia is planned within the current scope, which calls for establishing a Rail Baltica cross-border connection from Lithuania to the Estonian border, as well as to complete construction work at Riga Airport and the southern section of Riga Central Train Terminal to ensure the connection between Rail Baltica and the existing rail network.

The cost of the first phase of Rail Baltica in the Baltics could reach EUR 14.3 billion, of which EUR 5.5 billion would be in Latvia; however, depending on inflation, this amount could rise to EUR 6 billion.

According to the cost-benefit analysis, the total project cost in the Baltic states could reach EUR 23.8 billion. A previous cost-benefit analysis conducted in 2017 estimated that the project would cost a total of EUR 5.8 billion.

The Rail Baltica project aims to build a European standard-gauge railway line from Tallinn to the Lithuanian-Polish border, thereby enabling the Baltic states to be connected by rail to other European countries. In the Baltic states, plans call for the construction of a new 870-kilometer-long European standard-gauge (1,435 mm) railway line with a maximum train speed of 240 kilometers per hour.