Baltic states discussing sustainable LNG supplies

The regional LNG solution must be cost-effective and sustainable in the long term, according to the Estonian prime minister Jüri Ratas. 

During the meeting in Paldiski, where the Estonian company Alexela is developing an LNG terminal, Ratas and his Latvian and Lithuanian counterparts, Kučinskis and Skvernelis, respectively, discussed the common goal of the Baltic states to ensure a diverse and secure gas supply.

Ratas said that, for an LNG solution to remain sustainable in the long term, an LNG terminal has to be developed by private investors.

In regard to the location of the regional LNG terminal, Ratas said the government of Estonia and the Estonian developers had proceeded from the decisions made and analyses conducted at both regional and European Union level.

According to a statement issued by the Estonian government, the study ordered by the European Commission found that the coast of the Gulf of Finland would be the best place to construct a regional LNG terminal.

“When we speak of long-term solutions, the most reasonable would be to construct the terminal here, in Paldiski, for example,” Ratas added.

The proposed regional LNG terminal on the coast of the Gulf of Finland is an important element in a package that also includes the Baltic Connector gas interconnection between Estonia and Finland, and the GIPL gas interconnection between Lithuania and Poland.

This list of major gas infrastructure projects was agreed upon in 2013 with the aim of connecting the Baltic states and Finland to the single gas market of the EU, thereby creating opportunities for diversifying gas supply sources, the statement reads.