The leading business magazine Kauppalehti, reported by Olli Herrala, gave important visibility to the development of the Rail Baltic connection and the forthcoming study by Proximare consortium on the North Sea - Baltic Corridor.
Kauppalehti (FI) on 27.12.2013.
Titled "The fast Baltic railway connection will come true" Kauppalehti elaborated on the importance of the land connection (road, railways) to Finland's international trade.
The article included several quotes by experts and stakeholders who have an interest in the Rail Baltic process (translations by MP):
"The Rail Baltic process, which has been in the planning phase for years, is bound to speed up this spring because the Rail Baltic Joint Venture will need to submit its financial application to the EU. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania together ultimately understand the economic pressure. The creation of the Rail Baltic Joint Venture between the three Baltic States calls for strong political guidance and leadership." by Malla Paajanen
"The efficiency of transport networks is crucial for the competitiveness of the Finnish export industry. Finland locates at the end of the supply chain and therefore Finland will benefit tremendously when the leading trading points in the Western Europe are connected to the Baltic region by railways." by Malla Paajanen
The discussion about the sulphur regulation (due in 2015) proves how important it is for the industries to find alternative transport routes that are economically attractive. The Rail Baltic investment operate as an easing element to the ever-increasing pressure on road traffic." by Malla Paajanen
"The fast Rail Baltic connection will be ready in 2022 at the earliest. The demand by the Finnish export industry has a significant role in the scenario, as the Finnish will benefit the most of the connection." by Olli Keinänen, Senior Advisor, International Relations, City of Helsinki
"The Finnish forest industry is already in the process of investigating opportunities that the improving railway connections could provide. They could become a new and well-functioning transport corridor." by Olli Keinänen
"We cannot count on this alternative (of Rail Baltic). The existing connection from Tallinn to Gdansk operates now moderately, and according to our transport route connections map this is not among our core regions, whereas our core regions are for instance in Turkey and even further to the east." by Jussi Sarvikas, Logistics Director, UPM
"Both by infrastructure development and transport service providers the development in the Baltic States is very slow. There are so many countries and actors involved that the parties don't simply find a common interest." by Jussi Sarvikas