You're reading: Baltic leaders lobby new nuclear plant

VILNIUS, Lithuania — The prime ministers of the three Baltic states are urging energy companies to speed up negotiations on a new nuclear power plant in Lithuania.

The project, which is seen as crucial for Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to ensure energy independence from Russia, was originally announced six years ago but has encountered many obstacles, particularly ownership.

Last year Lithuania chose the U.S.-Japanese consortium Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy as a strategic partner in the €5 billion ($6.5 billion) project, which aims to replace a Soviet-era, Chernobyl-style nuclear plant that was shut down in 2009 due to safety concerns.

The prime ministers said Thursday they hope Poland will return to the project after withdrawing last year to build its own nuclear plant.