Funds for the further implementation of the Latvian section of the railway project "Rail Baltica" are planned to be attracted from the new multiannual budget of the European Union, which currently provides for a significant increase in funding in the transport sector, Prime Minister Evika Silina ("New Unity") told the LETA agency.
She reminded that the state budget for 2026 allocates 260 million euros for the implementation of the "Rail Baltica" project, and it is important to accelerate the pace of construction work.
Silina emphasized that in the medium term, the main focus is on increasing support from the EU and strict discipline in spending matters.
Currently, the Ministry of Transport has been tasked with working together with the project implementers to reduce costs for the Latvian section of "Rail Baltica". In turn, the government's goal, according to the Prime Minister, is to achieve maximum support for this project in the next EU budget.
"As before, the project is mainly planned to be financed from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), additionally using funds available under cohesion policy and military mobility," noted Silina.
She also emphasized that the draft of the new multiannual EU budget currently provides for a significant increase in funding specifically in the transport sector, and these funds are planned to be attracted for the further implementation of the Latvian section of "Rail Baltica".
As previously reported, the European Court of Auditors concluded in its report on EU transport infrastructure that the costs of the "Rail Baltica" project are likely to exceed 23.8 billion euros after the completion of the second phase.
The report updates the considerations and conclusions of the Court obtained during a similar audit conducted in 2020. The report focuses on the costs and timelines of eight TEN-T megaprojects, including the "Rail Baltica" railway project.
The Court concluded that the completion deadline for the EU core network — 2030 — will not be met, and the costs of two projects have significantly increased. In particular, the costs for "Rail Baltica" have more than doubled since 2020.
It was also reported that, according to information from "RB Rail", the cost of the first phase of "Rail Baltica" in the Baltic countries may reach 14.3 billion euros, of which 5.5 billion is in Latvia. However, there is potential for savings of up to 500 million euros through the optimization of technical solutions, as well as possible other savings.
The total project costs, according to the cost-benefit analysis, in the Baltic countries may reach 23.8 billion euros. The previous analysis in 2017 estimated that the entire project would cost 5.8 billion euros.
The "Rail Baltica" project involves the construction of a European standard railway line from Tallinn to the Lithuanian and Polish border, in order to further connect the Baltic states with other countries in Europe. A new European gauge (1435 mm) railway line is planned to be built in the Baltic countries, stretching 870 kilometers with a maximum train speed of 240 kilometers per hour.
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