Lithuanian Foreign Minister: Latvia supports nuclear facility project, power link project with Sweden moving ahead

“There have been statements that we do not talk with our partners, that we should pursue regional cooperation in the first place... I have recently visited Latvia and met with its president, the prime minister and the ministers. All of them support this project, the nuclear power plant. As far as the links with Sweden are concerned, it will be in place by 2015. There are no problems here – the work goes on, the cable has been tested,” he said on Tuesday in response to a statement by MP Andrius Šedžius that Lithuania fails to agree with the regional partners on the new nuclear facility project, that Lithuania’s neighbors do not approve of that project and that the project of a power link with Sweden got stalled.

“I had some discussions with [Latvian] MPs and they said clearly: we see no point in investing a billion euros in Lithuania and in buying electricity at market prices from the same exchange subsequently. And we state in the strategy that there will be common independence, a joint project. Is it possible to have a joint project if we do not have the approval from our neighbors? The same could be said about the project with Sweden which got stalled as neither the Latvians nor us could agree on the location of the link. The amount of 186 million euros approved by the European Commission will probably be lost,” Šedžius said as the Seimas (parliament) debated an upgraded draft of the national energy independence strategy.

Meanwhile, Ažubalis said that the adoption and implementation of the national energy independence strategy would complete the final stage of Lithuania’s eurointegration.

“Our national energy sector is still dependent on a single supplier directly and entirely. And the energy sector, as we all know, is the foundation of the national economy and economic welfare of all Lithuanian people. All areas developed by Lithuania’s energy sector, i.e. the power links and nuclear energy, gas and heat, renewables, efficiency and savings, serve the same purpose, which is Lithuania’s energy independence. These areas are complementary and not conflicting as someone might say,” the minister said.