Rail Baltica Launches Tender For Europe’s Largest Railway Electrification Project

RB Rail AS, the company responsible for the Rail Baltica project, has launched a new tender for the electrification of the railway line spanning Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The tender covers the design and construction of the entire corridor’s energy subsystem, from Tallinn to the Lithuania-Poland border and from Kaunas to Vilnius, making it the largest railway electrification project in Europe undertaken as a single project.

The announcement follows a previous contract signed in 2025 for the design and implementation of the electrification, valued at EUR 1.77 billion. This new tender focuses on securing technical expertise for the design phase of the electrification in Latvia and Lithuania, according to a market consultation launched by RB Rail AS.

Largest Electrification Project in Europe

According to RB Rail AS, the Rail Baltica electrification project will require over 2,000 km of catenary system, approximately 4,350 tonnes of copper materials, and the installation of 50,000 masts. The electrified line is projected to consume 900 GW.h of electricity annually, representing an estimated 3% increase in national consumption for each Baltic State.

The project’s scope includes high voltage connection points for linking traction power substations to the public electrical grids, traction power substations themselves, the overhead contact system, and an energy control command system. The implementation will address complexities arising from differing legislation across Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, as the line crosses three international borders.

Market Consultation for Design Expertise

The current market consultation aims to independently validate technical solutions for the power supply infrastructure before the detailed design phase begins. RB Rail AS is seeking expertise in the analysis and validation of solutions concerning traction substations, overhead contact line infrastructure, and the integration of the energy system into the overall Rail Baltica project.

“The launch of this market consultation is an important step in preparing for the next phase of the Rail Baltica energy subsystem development. With the upcoming procurement for design expertise, we want to ensure that the technical solutions are of high quality, compliant, and technically sound to support the start of detailed design,”

Uģis Sabulis, ENE Program Manager at RB Rail AS

Interested companies can review preliminary documentation and submit comments on qualification requirements and technical specifications until February 27, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. (Riga time). The feedback received will be used to refine the conditions before the official launch of the competition.

Innovative Electrification Architecture

The Rail Baltica project is implementing a new electrification architecture utilizing Static Frequency Converters (SFC) on a large scale. This approach is designed to provide flexible and efficient integration between countries. RB Rail AS selected ENE Engineer in 2021 to provide engineering services for the global project energy subsystem deployment.

The initial tender for the energy subsystem, launched in June 2022, covered the design and construction of the entire corridor’s electrification. This latest move signifies a continued push towards realizing the ambitious Rail Baltica project, which aims to connect the Baltic states with the European railway network.