Discussion regarding whether or not to include Vilnius to the official route of Rail Baltica is the last obstacle towards reaching a definitive agreement in about the project as a whole, notes Latvian transport Minister Anrijs Matiss.
In his interview to Rīta Panorāma programme of LTV, Matiss said Vilnius should be part of Rail Baltica as the capital of Vilnius. On the other hand, however, if both Kaunas and Vilnius are included in Rail Baltica, the road becomes zigzag. This may result in Rail Baltica losing its status as a high-speed route.
The minister admits a joint company was supposed to have had been founded this January in order to manage Rail Baltica project, but it was never done. The reason for the delay lies in the unsuccessful attempts to reach an agreement regarding the inclusion of Vilnius in Rail Baltica.
The additional branch to Vilnius (100 km) could cost as much as EUR 300 million.
‘Additional questions have surfaced in Rail Baltica project. They are related to Lithuania’s wish to add Vilnius to the project. This is why it has been decided to postpone the foundation of a joint enterprise until March,’ – as reported by deputy State Secretary of Transport Ministry Ilze Aleksandrovica.
Up until now it was planned to have Rail Baltica cross Kaunas. It was originally planned to found a joint enterprise before January 1st, 2014.
The goal of this joint enterprise is to properly coordinate preparations for the construction of the railway line and coordinate the development of a financial project for the European Commission and other related activities.
Rail Baltica 2 could cost Latvia as much as EUR 1.27 billion. This project could cost all three Baltic States a total of EUR 3.68 billion. The European Commission is prepared to provide 85% of the necessary funding for this project.
Source: Baltic News Network
http://bnn-news.com/minister-inclusion-vilnius-rail-baltic-route-obstacle-109523