Discussions about future Baltic projects take place in Klaipeda
The next Baltic joint project between Latvia and Lithuania will take the form of a mail and air companies. According to Transport Minister, Eligijus Masiulis, the initiative of a joint postal company is favoured by Vilnius and Riga. Nonetheless, he cautions that the possibility of establishing a joint airline needs to be carefully assessed by the experts on both nations first
Such ideas were discussed in the framework of a ministerial meeting in Klaipeda yesterday with his Latvian counterpart, Aivis Ronis. Speaking to BNS, the minister declared in a press released that “a year ago, the postal companies of the Baltic countries signed a cooperation agreement but Estonia’s postal operator made investments and started to compete with Lietuvos Pastas (Lithuanian Post). However, Latvia is very positive about this cooperation idea, ” the minister remarked to BNS.
In evaluating prospective Baltic cooperation, it must be highlighted that Eesti Post already operates Lithuania’s self-service parcel terminal chain, Post 24. Earlier on the month, the Estonia logistical company acquired Lithuania’s Unipakas for an undisclosed amount in order to expand its services within the domestic market. Taking this into consideration, Minister Masiulis said that if the economic benefits of this joint postal company were measured in a positive lights, then certainly discussions will move forward to a more advanced level.
In the press release, the minister also discussed the possibility of establishing a joint airline company and measured the advances in the European-gage railway project, Rail Baltica. In his words, Minister Masiulis proposed to the other Baltic countries to resume negotiations and renew calculations in order to make concrete assessments whether such partnerships would bring measurable economic benefits. In this regard, the minister pointed out, “Latvia’s minister told me that Riga is now looking for an investor for AirBaltic and the company is cutting its losses. What we have today, is more of a political will to establish the company. The experts should meet to discuss the idea of the airline company next,” Masiulis reiterated to BNS.
Latvia is searching for strategic investors for its national air carrier, AirBaltic, in view of the loss of profits that that company has been enduring lately. At the same time, Estonia has also launched discussions on the future of its flagship airline, Estonian Air.
