LATVIA is facing arbitration proceedings from a consortium of Spanish engineering firms seeking more than €14m in compensation following the termination of a contract to design the Riga section of the Rail Baltica high-speed project.
The claim, filed by Idom and Ineco, stems from a contract that was cancelled in 2023 amid allegations of delays and contractual breaches. Latvia's Ministry of Transport has responded with a €3.37m counterclaim.
The dispute adds to the challenges facing Rail Baltica, where costs have escalated dramatically and are now estimated at up to €23.8bn. Completing Rail Baltica by 2030, as scheduled, is now impossible in any of the three Baltic states, Latvian prime minister Andris Kulbergs told local news outlet Delfi.
According to Kulbergs, policymakers in both Lithuania and Estonia understand that the current deadline is unrealistic, but are reluctant to be the first to publicly acknowledge it. “They are hoping Latvia will be the first, so they can point the finger at us,” Kulbergs says.
Rail Baltica was invited to comment on the arbitration case and respond to Kulbergs’ comments, but IRJ has not received a response to date.
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