Thursday, April 16, 2026

Headlines

public regulation

Does the CVK have fictitious employees? Most likely, at least one.

The Central Election Commission (CVK) employs at least one fictitious female employee who was formally hired so that her husband could avoid paying child support at a faster-increasing rate – this conclusion can quite reasonably be drawn from the information received by the Inc. editorial office and from attempts to verify this information. Early on the morning of March 26, after the current affairs broadcast “Kas notiek Latvijā?” (“What’s Happening in Latvia?”), in one of the messaging apps I […]

State Secretary of the Ministry of Environmental Protection involved in IT scandal temporarily suspended from office

Taking into account the public interest regarding publicly available information about a possible involvement in the unlawful transfer of restricted-access information related to IT procurements, the Minister for Smart Administration and Regional Development, Raimonds Čudars, has suspended the Ministry of Environmental Protection state secretary Edvīns Balševics from performing his official duties, the ministry informs. “Within the framework of the investigation, it is important to ensure that all persons involved in the violations of law are brought to justice, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the State Regional Development Agency fully […]

An innovative system for bird protection in wind farms is being developed in Latvia

Latvijas Mobilais Telefons (LMT) and JSC Latvenergo have launched a research project aimed at developing a technology unique in Latvia for the automatic detection and identification of birds in wind turbine parks. This solution will help reduce the risk of bird mortality while promoting the sustainable development of wind energy and compliance with environmental protection requirements. The project is an important step for innovation and nature protection in Latvia, because so far […]

The enchanted cycle of heat

The heating season is just around the corner, and residents of Riga will again pay more for heat. Politicians, who face Saeima elections next year, have suddenly set about trying to reduce heating tariffs in Riga, but their little blanket of populism is more likely to tear than to reach the goal – all because short-term solutions have been made the priority for their own aims and interests, instead of tackling the root of the growing problem. However banal […]

Investment price: one Estonian is guaranteed timber for ten years without an auction, at the agreed price

The Estonian company Fibenol, which plans to build one of the most modern biorefinery plants in Europe in Valmiera, promising to invest up to 700 million euros in it, is trying to reach an agreement with the Latvian government on more favorable conditions for purchasing pulpwood. The company wants to buy 300 thousand cubic meters of birch pulpwood per year from “Latvijas Valsts meži” without an auction and at an agreed price. This fact was reported this spring […]

The Competition Council has imposed a 1.8 million euro fine on Maxima

The Competition Council has imposed a fine of 1.8 million euros on one of the largest food retail companies – Maxima Latvia – for unfair trading practices. The company will appeal this decision in court. “Maxima Latvia today received the decision of the Competition Council, in which the company is accused of, in certain cases, not agreeing to the commercial terms offered by suppliers. Maxima Latvia categorically disagrees with the interpretation of the Competition Council. Latvian legislation […]

The Competition Council imposes a fine of 1.8 million euros on a retailer – it is reportedly not RIMI

The Competition Council has imposed a fine of 1.8 million euros on one of the largest food retail companies for unfair trading practices. It is said not to be RIMI. For now, the CC is not providing more detailed information; this will be done at the press conference scheduled for Thursday, 6 November. RIMI public relations representative Inga Bite, in a conversation with Inc., denied that the fine had been imposed on this retail chain. Meanwhile, with Maxima’s public […]

MICA regulation: competitive “on paper”, in practice – nothing

Since mid-August, the number of licensed crypto-asset service providers in the European Union has increased by 52%, reaching 82 companies. Latvia, however, has not yet issued any licenses, as the Bank of Latvia has concerns about the potential market players’ reputation and level of maturity, the Head of Financial Technology at the Bank of Latvia emphasized at a meeting of the Subcommittee on Innovation Ecosystem Development of the Saeima Sustainable Development Committee […]

Farmers’ Saeima: The result of the “Valainis memorandum” is a more challenging cooperation with supermarkets

In the assessment of the Farmers’ Saeima association, the memorandum on reducing food prices, which was signed this spring by the Ministry of Economics (EM), retailers, and food producers, has so far not delivered the promised result. Member of the board of the Farmers’ Saeima association, Mārtiņš Trons: “Politicians stirred the air, but there is still no result or visible benefits. Quite the opposite – cooperation between farmers and retailers has become even more challenging.” By signing the memorandum on reducing food prices […]