Energy, Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Gas, Transport

Kaja Kallas.

According to Kallas, important feature is for the terminal’s operator to be independent from current dominant gas suppliers.

Estonia and Finland attempt to agree on the terminal location before March 6 and 7, 2013, when the Baltic Sea countries will be discussing energy issues.

Kallas said that an LNG terminal would create jobs in Estonia and the cost of the project of about 500 million euros will be significant for Estonia's economic development.

Gas companies Gasum in Finland and Võrguteenus in Estonia – both of which are partially owned by Gazprom – announced last week that they have chosen the Finnish town Inkoo for an LNG terminal.

As Aripaev.ee reported on February 25, Finnish Economy and Employment Ministry Energy Department Head Esa Härmälä said that the best location for the Baltic states' and Finnish common regional LNG terminal would be Finland.

"I see no advantages. In that case, a bigger investment would be needed for the pipeline and there would be less business possibilities," Härmälä said, answering the question of Äripäev of how building the terminal in Estonia would look from the Finnish side.

Estonian economy minister Juhan Parts did not approve of the position voiced by the Finnish Gasum OY and Eesti Gaas' subsidiary EG Võrguteenused recently that Inkoo in Finland would be the best location for a regional terminal. Parts said in an interview to Bloomberg last week that such agreement of companies is legally invalid and governments of the two states will make the decision.