EU Starts Paying for New Pol-Lit Pipe

Amber Grid, Lithuania’s gas transmission system operator, said May 11 it has received €1.2mn of EU funding under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to finance the construction works of gas Interconnection Poland-Lithuania (GIPL) in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania.

The money, paid in by the EU's Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (Inea), is the first advance payment for the project being co-led by AB Lithuanian gas grid Amber Grid and its Polish national counterpart Gaz-System. It represents 30% of financial assistance for the current year.

“The Gas Interconnection Poland-Lithuania [GIPL] project is being implemented on schedule. Currently, tenders are underway for the selection of contractors to carry out the construction works and for the selection of suppliers of pipes. The EU's financial support is an important element in the implementation of the project, which showcases the Europe-wide importance of this project and which significantly reduces the impact on gas transportation prices," said Lithuanian Energy vice-minister Aleksandras Spruogis.

GIPL is one of the EU's projects of common-interest (PCIs) and aims to integrate the gas markets of the Baltic States into a single EU gas market.

Its total projected length is 522 km, of which 357km in Poland and 165km in Lithuania. The 70 centimetre-diameter pipe will connect gas compressor stations in Jauniūnai (Lithuania) and Rembelszczyzna (near Warsaw in Poland).

On November 21 2014 the European Commission decided to allocate CEF grants of €10.6mn for preparatory works and €295.4mn for construction. In addition, some of the costs of the GIPL investment in Poland will be covered as cross-border compensation from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. 

GIPL's construction within Lithuania is expected to be completed by July 2019.

Linas Jegelevicius