Latvia Transport Minister Anrijs Matiss said: “I want to emphasise that the greatest beneficiaries of this project will be the Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian citizens, who will be able to easily travel to any Baltic country and other destinations in Europe in the near future.”

Two representatives from each country of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania have been appointed to the board of RB Rail – Anti Moppel for Estonia is chairman of the board, Ugis Magonis representing Latvia and Dainius Budyrs Lithuania. They will oversee the design, construction and marketing of the new 728km long railway line which will enable trains to travel at speeds not exceeding 240km/h achieving travel times of Tallinn to the Lithuanian-Polish border of about 4 hours.

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Only last year Elron replaced the old rolling stock with new electric trains. The new carriages were designed to be wider more comfortable seating with arm rests. Passengers are used to being able to board the train without concern for capacity. To curb this unsafe habit Elron have stated that the ticket sellers are to decide if any more passengers may board. Currently when there are too many passengers standing inside the isle it makes the flow of foot fall almost impossible for those wishing to get on and off. When the ticket sellers and the train driver have decided to stop further boarding passengers will be notified through the public address system and at all the stops only the middle section doors will open. As there are presently too few trains in circulation passengers left standing on the platforms will result.

In going forward with new rail plans Elron have had to take a few steps backwards but they are confident that all rail systems will be up to speed in the not too distant future.

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The event is reminiscing of the first Baltic Way, also known as the Baltic Chain, an extraordinary show of solidarity when some two million ordinary people of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania linked hands to form a human chain from Tallinn to Vilnius in 1989 covering over 600 kilometres. This peaceful protest was to mark the 50^th anniversary of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact which was created between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany and led to occupation of the Baltic States in 1940. This visually stunning event was designed to draw the world’s eyes to the desire for independence from the Soviet Union for each of the Baltic countries and the intense solidarity held among the these three nations.

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Eurostat is the statistical office of the European Union and by comparing figure from all the EU member states over a twelve year period has produced statistics and tables showing unemployment rises and falls within those states. As to be expected during the recent economic crisis all EU member states experienced rapid growth in unemployment. All countries then showed gradual growth in unemployment, a flattening out and eventual decline towards lessening unemployment, all of which takes time and increased commitment between governmental bodies and local industry.

Gratifyingly for the Baltic States figures gathered between September 2011 and 2012 show the biggest drop in all member states is reported to be in Estonia from 11.5% to 9.6%, closely followed by Lithuania from 14.2% to 12.4% and then Latvia from 15.7% to 14.2%..Greeceis shown to be one of the hardest hit with continual unemployment growth figures when their unemployment figures were compared from September 2011 at 18.4% climbing to 25.4% in September 2012.

It has been reported during the peak of the credit crunch crisis years that the whole of the European Union had much to gain from close inspection of the Baltic States and their untiring ability and willingness to belt tighten for the greater good of their economic future. Reports such as Eurostat validate the success of the Baltic States Governmental business policies.

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“The results shown by Estonian Air have been catastrophic. We cannot continue by losing 2.5 million Euros a month. It would not work,” said Jan Palmer.

By December 4^th the workforce will be reduced by half and the airline fleet reduced to just five aircraft. It has been announced that the employees will be reduced from 318 to just 172, one hundred of those earmarked as flight crew. There has been some rumble amongst the trade unions who consider that they have already made some big concessions. Veiko Saga, representative of the cabin crew trade union said that they had given up the work and rest time requirements and that they didn’t we have salary demands, that the only remaining issue that is being debated is the grounds of redundancies. Being so close to Christmas and the holiday period this could not have come at a worse time for Estonia Air and their employees.

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The press release stated that Estoniais installing smart meters to be inline with other EU countries and contribute to the EU target of improving energy efficiency by 20 percent by 2020. Elektrilevi provides electricity to just about every household and company in Estoniaand boasts almost a half-million subscribers on its network; they maintain and repair approximately 61,000 kilometres of power lines and 22,000 substations.

Installing smart meters will create greater control for consumers by enabling them to manage their energy consumption and reduce costs by supporting new tariff systems from their utility company and by providing more accurate billing. Utilities will also benefit from increased operational knowledge, the elimination of manual meter reading and savings through more accurate fraud detection.

Ericsson will supply and install services on the 2G/3G mobile internet and power-line communication technologies which will include operation of 630,000 smart meters. Ericsson will also perform systems integration of the meter and data management operation support systems and will operate the smart metering network during the installation and initial set up period.

Following a pilot project involving 5,700 smart meters this year, the rollout of the rest of the 630,000 smart meters will take place from 2013 to 2016. Ericsson will then provide maintenance for three years after which Elektrilevi will have the choice of possibly extending the maintenance contract until 2025.

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These problems are said to include high personnel turnover, which is one of the most unattractive business aspects possible. This turnover means that the rate of staff is constantly being churned through the business, with employees rarely staying for long. This is very bad news, as it forces the company to spend time and money on the recruitment process a lot more often than formerly required.

Another problem the company is experiencing is a lack of motivation amongst its employees. This is likely to cause targets to be missed and doesn’t set the workplace up for attaining corporate goals. Communication is vital in a business, but this is yet another thing Ober-Haus is said to be having trouble with. Low levels of communication can lead to disastrous outcomes in any institution.

It is stated that problems begun when Tarmo Kase took over as CEO of the company at the end of 2010. Several sources conclude that the decisions he made have actually forced nearly 20 employees to leave their job in a very short period. Kase was asked to make the company more profitable by restructuring, but all his efforts seem to have backfired, as most of the key staff have left or are in the process of leaving.

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London Taxi also operates in many other overseas locations, such as Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. The company has been a particular success in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. There, it has helped to significantly reduce the number of uninsured pirate cabs, and greatly improved the overall taxi service.

MacKrennon explained that London taxis are designed specially for the purpose, making them secure, durable and comfortable. On top of supplying these high quality cabs, the company is also offering specialised training for new drivers. If this venture goes ahead, London Taxi’s move could potentially create a large amount of jobs, and with training included, these jobs could even be available for those with no prior experience.

The head of the Tallinn municipal transport authority, Andres Harjo, has said that, although newcomers on the taxi market are always welcome, London Taxis will not be able to replace all existing operators, and nor will they be receiving any preferential treatment. However, it’s been commented by Harjo that the company “can build up a position where their services are more attractive than those of their competitors”. Only the market itself will decide if there is room for London Taxi in Tallinn, but it looks as if there’s no guaranteed short-cut to the top.

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The manager of hotel Olumpia, Vitali Makejev, has recently disclosed that they already have 15-20 days this summer where the hotel has over 90% of its rooms booked. This is likely to have something to do with all the great events that have been planned for Tallinnthis summer, such as Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Lady Gaga concerts. The Tallinn Cup 2012 also takes place this July.

Tallinn is already known for its fantastic hotels – from resorts to quaint boutiques, with the number one spot going to Hotel Schlossle, rated number 1 on Tripadvisor.com. The hotel features unique decoration, designed to reflect the charm of Tallinn’s ‘OldTown’. With the historic restored beams and a number of antique furnishings and tapestries, mixed in with a luxurious spa and sauna and up to date technologies, its no wonder Estoniais topping the tourist charts. Most of Europe is feeling the pinch with the present credit crunch, but every one needs a break and a reasonably priced destination oozing with quirky and beautiful medieval architecture, Tallinn’s old town hits the mark. Tourism will bring Estonia a welcome boost to the local economy.

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Thirteen years ago, Estonian investors signed a contract with Ukraine which agreed that Estonia would invest in a wine business, Magarach, the Ukrainian state grape and wine institute to start producing wines in Ukraine. Magarach Wine Institute near Yalta was founded in 1828, but by 1999 was not making enough money to pay its employees. Overall, Estonia invested around 400,000 US dollars into the business, although the previously agreed amount was only $100,000.

Despite turning a healthy profit since the investors became involve, the contract has been disregarded by Ukraine, and Ukraine is in fact planning to keep any profits the company has earned. However, the original contract actually stated that Estonian investors would have the right to claim back a massive 49% of the profits made. The Estonian investors were Aleksandr Dulushkov, Peter Kludma and Igor Lavrinjov.

In a meeting of shareholders in January 2011, it was decided that the Estonians had the right to receive this 49% of the profit and it was claimed it would be paid out in ten days time – this never went ahead. Ukraine changed its mind, and the money remained in their side of the business. The issue has been since taken to court, where two of the courts were in favour of the Estonian investors, while the third sent the case back to the first court. It is now feared that, as the courts are influenced by the state, the money may never be back on Estonian ground.

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