Klaipėda-based Birių Krovinių Terminalas (BKT), a joint-stock company specializing in bulk fertilizer transshipment, has formally proposed to the Lithuanian government to resume transit of Belarusian potash fertilizers via the Klaipėda port.
In a June letter to Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas and Cabinet members, BKT's CEO Ruslan Malinin offered to withdraw the firm's lawsuit against EU sanctions in exchange for ministerial approval to restart shipments via a legal mechanism akin to rail transit to Kaliningrad.
The proposal emphasized its alignment with global food security objectives and the reduction of Russia’s logistics revenue.
Before 2022, BKT handled approximately 11 million tonnes of Belaruskali product annually.
In February of that year, Lithuania's state railway Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (LTG Cargo) terminated its contract with Belarusian state-owned Belaruskali on national security grounds amidst expanded EU and US sanctions.
Belaruskali has also initiated arbitration proceedings with the Permanent Court of Arbitration, seeking about US $12.09 billion in damages, citing its 30 % non-voting ownership in BKT and lost transit earnings.
Government sources, including Prime Minister Paluckas’s advisor Justinas Argustas and Transport Minister Eugenijus Sabutis, have stated there are no ongoing discussions about the proposal and that the issue is not on the government’s agenda.
In February 2022, following a recommendation from Lithuania’s national security commission, the Transport Ministry cancelled the railway agreement permitting transit of Belarusian fertilizers via Klaipėda.
Birių Krovinių Terminalas (BKT) is a joint-stock company incorporated in Lithuania in 1997, BKT operates the bulk cargo terminal in Klaipėda specialising in mineral fertilizers and grains. Belarusian state enterprise Belaruskali holds a 30 % non-voting stake; the remaining 70 % is owned by Lithuanian entrepreneur Igor Udovickij. In 2023, BKT reported revenue of approximately €2.6 million .
Belaruskali is a Belarusian state-owned enterprise and global leader in potash fertilizer production.
Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (LTG Cargo) is the Lithuanian state-owned railway company responsible for freight transport.