The Ministry of Transport has prepared the first stage Rail Baltica implementation scenario in Latvia. This scenario provides for the construction of a single-lane railway track from the Lithuanian border all the way to Estonia, as well as compose a European gauge rail connection with one of the two Riga international stations, in turn, before the completion of the first stage of the project, it is planned to connect the two Riga international stations in the existing railway infrastructure, the ministry reports.
The Latvian ministry notes that the choice of the Upeslejas-Riga Central Station connection or the Misa-Riga Airport connection will be based on a separate feasibility study, which will determine which of the two connections is more profitable from an economic, technical and financial perspective. To implement this, it is planned to attract alternative financial solutions, such as public and private partnership (PPP).
Minister of Transport Kaspars Briškens stresses that in the first stage of the project Latvia needs to ensure the cross-border connection, which is the top priority in order to ensure compliance with the national economic and security interests of Latvia and fulfilment of international obligations. The minister also said it is necessary to establish a European gauge connection with at least one of Riga’s two international Rail Baltica stations.
“The upcoming multi-annual budget negotiations of the European Union (EU), which will determine how much EU funding will be available for the Rail Baltica project, will be crucial for Latvia and the project. The availability of this funding will also determine how quickly we will be able to implement the first round of the project within a time frame,” added the minister.
The ministry’s proposal in the first phase provides for the construction of one track from the Lithuanian border to Estonia, starting construction works on the section Lithuanian border Misa and according to the available funding. It is also planned, by reallocating the funds of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (AF) and the Cohesion Fund (CF) available to the transport sector to complete the construction work at both Riga International Stations – Riga Airport and the southern part of the Riga Central Railway Station in order to give functionality to these objects.
It is planned to build a new railway line from Imanta station to Riga Airport, thus connecting the two passenger stations with the broad-gauge railway before the construction of the European gauge line and integrating Riga Airport into the existing railway network. At the same time, it is planned to build at least four regional stations – Salacgriva, Skulte manor, Salaspils/Daugavkrasti, Bauska, taking into account that overtaking roads are also planned in these places, as well as infrastructure maintenance points in Iecava and Skulte, a traffic control centre and a side road for the future Salaspils freight terminal.
In parallel with the establishment of a cross-border connection, for which the highest priority and urgency has been determined, it is planned to establish a European gauge rail connection with one of the two international stations in Riga, to which, for example, a PPP is planned. In turn, it is planned to direct the financing of EU funds primarily to the financing of the activities referred to in the previous paragraphs.
The total cost of implementing the first cross-border connection from the Estonian border to the Lithuanian border, using only the freight bypass through Salaspils, is EUR 4.5 billion. In turn, the total costs of the infrastructure of the two international passenger stations and the related tracks amount to EUR 875 million, while the construction of point objects, including infrastructure maintenance points in Iecava and Skulte, the traffic control center and the Salaspils freight terminal of the side road, as well as four regional stations, requires EUR 133 million.
According to the estimates of the Baltic States joint stock company RB Rail, it would take EUR 629 million for the implementation of the Riga section Upesleja Riga Central Station, while the Misa Riga airport section – EUR 924 million.
The ministry stresses that these estimates are based on initial technical research and the technical solutions proposed therein. With the active cooperation of all parties involved, including during the preparation of the construction project, it will be possible to change and simplify technical solutions that could significantly reduce the amount of investment required at these stages.
At the same time, the ministry notes that work is underway on optimising the total construction costs of the project in order to reduce the estimated amount of funding for the implementation of the first phase. The project implementers review the technical solutions that could be built in the next phases and identify cost items where it would be possible to simplify the technical solution, such as road crossings, access roads, noise walls and the like.
From 2015 to 2024, by participating in the project application tenders announced by the European Commission (EC) for the granting of financial assistance from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), including from the Military Mobility envelope, a total of EUR 1.426 billion has been attracted by Latvia, including co-financing from the state budget.
In the last CEF call during the EU’s multi-annual budget planning period from 2021 to 2027, announced in September 2024, Latvia could indicatively attract an additional EUR 160 million, which would allow to continue construction works in the southern part from Lithuania to Salaspils.
In the first phase of the Rail Baltica project, the ministry proposes to use the EU AF and CF funds earmarked for the railway sector, including from the purchase of electric battery trains, which are projects with a high risk of non-execution.
According to the conclusions of the inter-institutional financial working group, it is planned to attract the missing funding for other activities of the first round from the CEF and other EU grant programmes, state budget co-financing and other sources of finance. The ministry stresses that the Ministry of Finance plays a critical role in planning, securing funding and aligning the financial flows of the project with the state budget processes, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in negotiations with potential private investors, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in negotiations on the next EU multi-annual budget. Currently, under the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, work has begun on the national position of Latvia for the next EU multi-annual financial period, which will be from 2028 to 2034.
The ministry also reports that the construction of the next stages of Rail Baltica, which will allow the full scope of the project, depends on the availability of funding. According to the ministry, in order to obtain maximum socio-economic benefits for Latvia and the Baltic region, it is essential to build all the infrastructure elements provided for in the Rail Baltica project.
In the second phase of the project, the ministry sees as a priority the creation of a full-fledged and passing Rail Baltica baseline corridor through Riga, creating a passenger baseline in accordance with the “Rail Baltica” track specified by the Cabinet of Ministers in 2016, as well as the technical and functional requirements specified in the TEN-T regulation.
In parallel, the ministry is working on an informative report on the national financing necessary for the implementation of the Rail Baltica project in 2024 in 2025, in which it will inform about the amount of funds necessary for the completion of the started works and achievement of the objectives of the concluded financing agreements. The ministry notes that this year the it has reduced the required amount by more than EUR 20 million to about EUR 15 million, and to EUR 50 million in 2025.
At the same time, in accordance with previous government decisions, the assessment of optimization of the administrative costs of the organizations implementing Rail Baltica is continuing, as well as the ministry has prepared an informative report on the permission for the ministry to enter into a general agreement on the purchase of consolidated materials in the Rail Baltica railway construction procurement and the draft law “Law on the Implementation of the Rail Baltica Project”.
According to the ministry, the first-round solution will also ensure the fulfilment of Latvia’s international obligations and will allow to approach the minimum amount required for the implementation of the project within the time period specified in the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) Regulation. The ministry also believes that this solution will provide the greatest added value to the inhabitants and economy of Latvia, allowing to start the gradual operation of the constructed Rail Baltica infrastructure.