At the moment, Rail Baltica’s bedding works are being carried out on a 29.2 km section. This year, it is planned to sign contracts for new sections of the railway bed and to extend the section of active works by an additional 36 km. Next year, it is planned to increase the work on the installation of the embankment by another 49 km of the work section towards Panevėžys. Strategic infrastructure development continues to be reliably financed by the European Union (EU). This means that the scope of both design activities and construction in Lithuania will continue to grow.
Subcontractors are Lithuanians
Currently, there are two foreign contractor companies working in the Lithuanian part of Rail Baltica – Italian and Latvian companies. It is estimated that in the last two years, about 95 percent Lithuanian subcontractor companies worked at Rail Baltica construction sites. Foreign contractors usually look for partners in the local market and hire local companies, pay wages and taxes, so investment in infrastructure construction returns to the general budget.
“In order to implement the activities of Rail Baltica by 2030 end, the volume of construction work is projected to increase exponentially each year until around 2028. end and then stabilize. For example, between 2024 and 2025 the scope of the planned works will differ tentatively by 3 times. Accordingly, the resources of the contractors performing the construction work and the amount of necessary equipment will have to increase. It can be distinguished that the construction of the high-speed railway is complex, international standards and requirements apply to them, so high qualifications are mandatory for all construction participants”, said Vytautas Tilinskas, head of the Rail Baltica section’s Kaunas-Lithuanian-Latvian border program.
Jobs – and using infrastructure
The effect of “Rail Baltica” on the labor market will be long-term, as eventually jobs will be created in the fields of infrastructure management and maintenance, station and terminal management, as well as in all types of passenger and cargo management spheres, in the districts located on both sides of the “Rail Baltica” route.
“Public infrastructure projects are one of the ways to promote and stimulate the economy. During the construction phase, Rail Baltica will create new jobs and contribute to the region’s GDP through various direct, indirect and additional effects from infrastructure investments. In the stage of using the infrastructure, it will increase the reach of the market of the Baltic States and the competitiveness of trade, the attractiveness of foreign investments and support the productivity and increased competitiveness of the transport and logistics industry of the Baltic States”, said V. Tilinskas.
The need for designers and contractors
According to the manager of the active construction sector program, the designer market in both Lithuania and the EU is filled with ongoing projects. Design companies are proactively invited to participate in the design procurements announced by Rail Baltica.
“We have not encountered a lack of construction capacity so far, but the expected intensive growth of construction works every year means that we have to work purposefully with the market in search of the necessary solutions, the market must be able to respond to the construction pace of this project, the necessary specialist and technical resources in the future.” Accordingly, we, the company, have consistent plans to increase resources: the engineering staff is growing, the number of project managers is increasing – we will be ready and we expect the same from other construction participants,” said the representative of Rail Baltica in Lithuania.
“Rail Baltica” is the largest railway infrastructure project in the history of the Baltic States, during the implementation of which an electrified European-standard two-track railway will be built, connecting Warsaw, Kaunas, Vilnius, Panevėžys, Riga, Pern and Tallinn. The total length of the “Rail Baltica” railway line in the Baltic countries reaches 870 km: in Lithuania – 392 km, in Latvia – 265 km, in Estonia – 213 km.
2024-08-22 15:18:30