Energy, EU – Baltic States, Gas, Legislation, Lithuania

The study, which will be carried out by ILF Consulting Engineers, is to be ready in the first quarter of 2013 and provide the basis for further action on the project, writes LETA/ELTA, referring to Reuters.

The connection will give the Baltic States access both to EU gas and global LNG markets.

Polish operator Gaz-System and Lithuanian utility Lietuvos Dujos, majority-owned by Russia's Gazprom and Germany's E.ON Ruhrgas, said earlier they expected the link to start operating in 2018.

"Gaz-System expects that a significant part of the investment will be financed from EU funds because this is a priority project in the scope of eliminating energy islands in Europe," its chief executive Jan Chadam was quoted as saying in a press statement.