12.06.2024
Rail Baltic Estonia is responsible for building the railway connection, and today we are maintaining the pace of construction so that the connection will be completed by 2030. Both construction and all necessary preparatory work, from procurement to land acquisition, are ongoing.
By the end of this year, construction on half of the Estonian route will either be underway or about to begin.
As of today, 22 km of the main route has been covered by construction contracts, with construction already underway in part, construction procurement for 52 km is in its final stages, and an additional 30 km of procurement will be announced at the time of publication. By the end of 2024, nearly half of the Estonian route will be covered by construction contracts, and construction work has begun on 72 km.
In addition, the Rail Baltica international terminal in Ülemiste is under construction, and nearly 30 ecoducts, bridges, and overpasses have been built or are being built. Unfortunately, the National Audit Office has not shown much interest in how the substantive work on the construction of the railway is actually going on, which is why the understanding of the institution auditing state life about the development of the railway, its technical aspects, preparation for operation, and other circumstances is superficial. We are always ready to help the National Audit Office team overcome this knowledge gap.
The basis for the National Audit Office's cost calculations is incorrect.
The cost of the Estonian part has been based on the budget approved by Rail Baltic Estonia – approximately 3,1 billion euros until 2030, when the connection will be ready for use in its main functions. We have repeatedly drawn the attention of the National Audit Office to the fact that their data and cost comparison base are outdated and that the total cost should be based on the budget approved and valid by RB Estonia. We have openly informed the European Commission, the government, the Riigikogu, ministries and the public about the current budget and its changes throughout the entire period, so this cannot come as a surprise to the National Audit Office.
The National Audit Office also focuses narrowly on the project costs in its report and does not reflect the direct or socio-economic benefits of the project to society as a whole, nor the broader changes in the meaning and importance of the project (security dimension, job creation, increasing the attractiveness of foreign investments, etc.). The Rail Baltica project also has a significant impact on employment. Most of these jobs will be created in the construction and transport sectors.
We have been continuously working on optimization in the Estonian section.
Compared to the cost estimate prepared in 2017 (1,8 billion euros), the lion's share of the increase has come from inflation, almost 40%, and about 30% related to the refinement of the project. The latter is related to the construction of additional connections and facilities, for example, dozens of ecoducts, animal and pedestrian tunnels have been added, as well as the addition of the Pärnu and Soodevahe freight stations. We have been continuously working on the optimization task on the Estonian section.
The current trend is to build a connection by 2030 that does not compromise on safety or speed, but is based on a one-way solution and the original more modest terminal and local stop solutions. The latest construction procurement results show that price increases have stopped and we are staying within our own budget or even below the control budget.
Based on the government's decision of 04.01.2024, the construction of Rail Baltica in Estonia will be carried out in stages so that by 2030, a Rail Baltica railway connection running through the whole of Estonia will be built, allowing two-way traffic on a single pair of tracks (allowing faster trains to pass slower trains in the case of same-direction traffic using side roads to be built). In addition, the first stage plans to build the Ülemiste and Pärnu international passenger terminals in full, but more economically, and all 12 local stops as a minimum access package.
As of today, the project, together with the state contribution, has received 730 million euros, and the EU CEF funding round is currently underway, from which additional funding should come. The prerequisite for funding is to ensure a sufficient pace of construction, which is currently fast enough on the Estonian section of the route. As of today, 22 km of the main route has been covered by construction contracts, construction procurements for 52 km are in the final stages, and an additional 30 km of procurements are still being published. In addition, the Rail Baltica international terminal in Ülemiste is under construction, and nearly 30 ecoducts, bridges, and overpasses have been built or are being built.
The comment submitted by Rail Baltic Estonia to the National Audit Office's review can be found here. FROM HERE.
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