Lithuanian Government Allocates Another €156,600 To Lawyers For Trial With Belaruskali

• 16.04.2025, 10:51

Cases of this type usually last 3-5 years.

The Lithuanian government has allocated more than 156,600 euros to lawyers representing the country in an investment arbitration dispute with the Belarusian state-owned potash fertiliser producer Belaruskali, writes Delfi.

The Lithuanian Ministry of Transport and Communications requested that part of the funds borrowed on behalf of the state be used to pay for legal representation services provided to the state by the law firm Ellex Valiūnas ir partneriai in October-December last year.

The government had already allocated €320,000 to the lawyers in March last year, more than €546,800 in September and almost €164,000 in November.

Some of these funds were also allocated to the London-based law firm Covington & Burling LLP.

‘Belaruskali’ is disputing significant losses incurred after suspending the transit of potash fertilisers through Lithuania from 1 February 2022, which was supposed to continue until the end of 2023. At that time, state-owned Lithuanian Railways (Lietuvos gelezinkeliai, LTG) cancelled a contract with the company financing Aliaksandr Lukashenka's regime.

As the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague reported in February this year, the lawsuit, filed by Belaruskali in early December last year, aims to recover damages of about €11.8 billion from Lithuania. It was planned that the first hearing on the arbitration case could be held in February 2026, but it is likely that this date may be postponed.

However, as previously reported, cases of this type usually last 3-5 years. The government confirmed that Lithuania's contract with a Belarusian fertiliser producer posed a threat to national security, while the Lithuanian General Administrative Court also stated that the decision was justified.