Employment, EU – Baltic States, Latvia, Railways, Transport

If the trains are manufactured by RVR, the company, which currently has a staff of 230, will need another 700 workers. But even a larger number of new jobs will be created in the associated business sectors, informs LETA.

"The RVR will not manufacture everything itself. We will need partners who will supply, for instance, the benches, the finishing materials, the lighting fixtures, the flooring materials and much, much more," said Igaunis. If RVR secures the order, and later has an opportunity to export its products to other countries, it will present an excellent growth opportunity for a number of medium-sized and small enterprises, he explained.

Igaunis does not rule out that eventually train engines could also be manufactured in Latvia. Talks are under way with the Canadian-French joint venture Bombardier Transportation, a company that RVR has teamed up for the Pasazieru vilciens tender.

"Our estimates show that each person employed in mechanical engineering provides jobs for about seven people in other industries. Therefore this project could create 4,000 to 5,000 jobs altogether in sectors that are oriented toward exports," said Igaunis, emphasizing the importance of the acquisition of new technology by RVR.

According to Igaunis, overall since RVR was established, the company has made around 20,000 electric trains and about 9,000 diesel trains.