As a 10-year contract on gas transit via Lithuania to Russia’s Kaliningrad region is expiring at the end of the year, the energy minister says it is too early to say if it will be extended.
Zygimantas Vaiciunas noted that the gas transit deal was not just a bilateral issue between Vilnius and Moscow, it also involved the European Union.
“The transit agreement is currently in place, and transit is happening. After that, of course, we’ll look into possible options for extending it, but for now, it’s still far too early to say,” the minister told reporters after the State Defence Council’s meeting on February 26.
“Until the end of the year, we’ll have concrete decisions,” he added.
The energy minister did not answer the question of whether the option of not extending the gas transit contract with Russia was being considered.
“This issue isn’t just about Lithuania and the Kaliningrad region – it’s also an important matter for the European Union, and EU institutions will need to be involved in the process,” he said, responding to a question about the conditions under which the contract could be extended.
According to the minister, Lithuania receives up to 20 million euros in revenue from gas transit to Kaliningrad annually.
“Historically, extensions or changes to such contracts have always taken place at the end of the year. We’ll see how it goes this year. But basically, today we’re stating the fact that transit is taking place in accordance with the contracts, so we’re acting in a civilised manner,” Vaiciunas said.
“As I mentioned, this is also a European agenda issue, so it’s not just a bilateral matter between Lithuania and Kaliningrad,” he added.
Lithuania’s gas transmission system operator Amber Grid signed the 10-year gas transit contract with Russia’s state-owned gas company Gazprom in late December 2015. The previous contract had been signed at the end of 1999.
Lithuania cut off Russian gas imports entirely in April 2022, except for transit via its territory to the Kaliningrad exclave.
Commenting on the matter, Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas said that Vilnius did not intend to unilaterally escalate tensions with Moscow.
“When it comes to any pressure – or not exerting it – we have to understand that escalating these relations is not in Lithuania’s interest. Lithuania has never threatened its neighbours or tried to pressure them by any means,” Paluckas told reporters when asked whether Vilnius was considering ending the contract to put pressure on Russia.
“We certainly have no intention of using these instruments for absolutely unnecessary escalation,” he added.
Paluckas said that the gas transit contract would not be extended only if Europe decided against it.
“Gas transit is a European issue, and it should remain so. If all of Europe decided that ensuring such gas transit was no longer necessary, that decision would be implemented,” he said. (LRT)