"In working out the budget program for the Connecting Europe Facility from 2014 to 2020, we have co-financing possibilities. We hope that this budget will be approved by the end of the year and we will thus have a co-financing instrument," he told reporters in Vilnius on Friday when asked if Lithuania could expect the EU's financial support in taking full control of the gas transmission pipelines.
Some sources say that it was a diplomatic answer in which the EU commissioner did not rule out helping Lithuania to buy Gazprom's and E. ON's stakes in Amber Grid.
Oettinger said that such an instrument would be helpful to countries where market financing was not sufficient.
"We expect to discuss these issues with member states by the end of the year," he said.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said after a meeting with Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller in Vilnius in early September that Lithuania was planning to buy the stakes in Amber Grid from E.ON and Gazprom.
However, Lithuanian Energy Minister Jaroslav Neverovič said at that time that the purchase of the shares was not being discussed.
The gas transmission pipelines of Lietuvos Dujos (Lithuanian Gas) were spun off into a new company, Amber Grid, in late July to bring it into line with the Third Energy Package. Gazprom will have to exit Amber Grid by November 2014.
In line with the package, gas supply, distribution and transmission operations must have separate owners. It is therefore likely that the government will offer to purchase the shares of Amber Grid from Gazprom and E.ON.
Gazprom currently owns 37.06 percent of shares in Amber Grid, E.ON Ruhrgas International holds 38.9 percent, and the Lithuanian Energy Ministry owns 17.7 percent.
