"I believe Lithuania will benefit from being a nuclear country for the next 20-30 years along with developing alternative energy. It is a project that can give an enormous economic stimulus to all of the region," the president told journalists on Monday.
In Grybauskaitė's words, it is the government's duty to provide thorough information to the public prior to the advisory referendum, which the parliament decided to hold in conjunction with the general elections on 14 October.
"For people to be able to make up their minds, the government should do its homework, i.e., provide full and detailed information about the project to the people. It is crucial to have realistic and actual conversations with people in order to enable them to make a reasoned decision," the president said.
"There are many speculations and misinformation, and it is the government's responsibility to change the misinformation and the distorted information," Grybauskaitė told journalists.
In her opinion, Visaginas NPP project is "beneficial, however, it is only beneficial if it is transparent, honest and free of political intrigues."
Lithuania expects to build a new nuclear power facility in Visaginas by 2020-2022 together with Latvia, Estonia, and Japan’s Hitachi.
