OREANDA-NEWS. March 30, 2012. President of Latvia Andris Berzins was on a working visit in Lithuania, and after his meeting with Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, both presidents confirmed that their main topic of discussion was energy policy and diversification of energy supplies in the Baltic States.
 
In relation to the construction of a nuclear power plant at Visaginas, President Berzins emphasised the fact that Latvenergo has information and rules which relate to multilateral co-operation in the construction of the plant which all suggest that this is a project that would be advantageous for Latvia. The involvement of numerous countries in the project, however, will mean a lot of effort to get to the point of agreement. President Grybauskaite said that a concession agreement on the project might be signed in June, which would bring the development of the project into the next phase. Negotiations about participation in the project are currently occurring at the level of power companies. President Berzins confirmed this, saying that he has information specifically from Latvenergo about this matter. Latvia, he added, is prepared to take part in the Visaginas project only on the basis of economic and commercial advantage.
 
The two presidents also confirmed that they talked about the construction of a liquefied natural gas terminal in the Baltic States. Latvia continues to insist that it is most appropriate in terms of geographic and economic considerations in the region when it comes to where the plant should be located. The European Commission, as is known, is conducting a preliminary study to determine various solutions for the terminal in the region and to find the economically most advantageous location for the project. The first results of the study are expected in July of this year. Lithuanian representatives, for their part, said that they will continue to promote the construction of a national liquefied gas terminal in Klaipeda. President Grybauskaite noted that Lithuania is interested in using the Latvian gas storage facility at Incukalns in the future, but both presidents confirmed that the results of the EC’s examination will be taken into account irrespective of the various national projects that are being organised.
 
Asked about the upcoming EU decision on sanctions against Belarus, President Berzins said that such sanctions could influence relations between Latvia and Belarus not just in economic terms, but also in terms of mutual transfrontier contacts. These, the President added, are particularly important in Latgale, where the partnerships have already been established and strengthened. This co-operation is also of essential importance in terms of Latvia as the frontier zone of the European Union. The bottom line, said Mr Berzins, is that such sanctions could have a negative effect on Latvia’s economic development.
 
Latvia’s representatives at the meeting also brought up the issue of renewing rail traffic between Mazeikiai and Renge.  President Berzins asked the Lithuanians to restore the dismantled tracks between the two towns as quickly as possible. Top officials from the two countries have discussed this matter on several occasions in the past, and representatives of the transit industry in Latvia are upset about the inability to use the most economically advantageous route for transport. Latvian Railway, said President Berzins, is forced to suffer losses, because it is forced to maintain 70 km of tracks between Gluda and Renge. This, added the President, is of no use for transit cargoes, because the tracks on Lithuania’s side have been dismantled. This means transporting cargoes another 120 km via Siauliai and Viski. President Grybauskaite said that she is prepared to look at the issue.
 
At the conclusion of the news conference, the Lithuanian president confirmed that she has accepted an invitation from the Latvian president to pay a state visit to Latvia. It is expected that this visit could occur in June.