MINSK, 16 January (BelTA) – Belarus will discuss the possibility of directly supplying Belarusian electricity to Latvia, BelTA learned from Prime Minister of Belarus Sergei Rumas after he met with his Latvian counterpart Krisjanis Karins on 16 January, BelTA has learned.
Sergei Rumas said: “In particular, we've discussed energy matters. We've agreed that our energy ministries will discuss the possibility of direct supplies of electricity to Latvia instead of neighboring countries.”
According to Sergei Rumas, there is a great potential for cooperation in the sphere of freight transportation. “As a landlocked country Belarus is strongly interested in the potential of Latvian ports for transshipping various Belarusian cargoes. We've also agreed that the matter will be high on agenda in the work of the intergovernmental commission headed by our transport ministers,” the Belarusian head of government explained.
Sergei Rumas pointed out that Belarus-Latvia relations develop very dynamically and good cooperation has been established at the political level. “We are grateful to Latvia for assistance with building good and trustful relations with the European Union, for assistance with shaping investment and credit cooperation,” he stressed.
Speaking about Belarus-Latvia trade, Sergei Rumas noted that it shrank a bit in 2019, however, he was convinced the situation will be fixed in 2020.
“The potential for advancing relations with Latvia is possibly the highest among all our neighbors. And it is up to the governments to fully explore this potential today,” Sergei Rumas concluded.
BelTA reported earlier that Latvia does not rule out the possibility of buying electricity in Belarus. The matter has been discussed from the point of view of commissioning of the Belarusian nuclear power plant among other things. The Latvian Cabinet of Ministers backed the Economy Ministry's proposal that if Lithuania suspends trade in electricity with Belarus, this trade will be transferred from the Lithuanian border to the Latvian one in order to enable direct supplies.
