The estimates are provided in a report on a 10-year gas regional investment plan that has been developed, for the first time, by the Baltic region's gas transmission system operators.
A Final Investment Decision (FID), signed in 2009, provides for investing 25.9 million euros in enhancing the capacity of the gas interconnection, of which 5.9 million euros is to be invested on the Lithuanian side and 20 million euros on the Latvian side.
Lietuvos Dujos (Lithuanian Gas) says that this project is currently being carried out.
The project involves building a total of 3.2 kilometers of new pipes in the two countries, upgrading the Panevėžys gas compressor station in Lithuania and 15 wells in the Incukalns underground gas storage (UGS) facility in Latvia, as well as other work.
"Implementation of the project will increase security of gas supply and provide bi-directional gas flows with additional capacity between Lithuania and Latvia; it will strengthen economic cooperation and development of necessary links between the two systems in order to use this link after connection between Lithuania and Poland is built with the aim of improving safety of supply for the entire Baltic States region," the report says.
Some 27.9 million euros is expected to be invested in another project aimed at further enhancing gas interconnection capacity between Lithuania and Latvia. However, a FID on this project is yet to be signed, according to the report.
If the project is approved, 25 million euros should be invested in building a 40-kilometer gas pipeline from Riga to Iecava, in southern Latvia, and another 2.9 million euros in increasing the capacity of the Kiemenai gas station close to Lithuania's border with Latvia.
"In case a gas interconnection between Lithuania and Poland were built, the increase of capacity of the Lithuanian-Latvian interconnection would create more opportunities for using Incukalns UGS and cross-border gas trade," the report says.
