Lithuania buys from Norway a liquefied natural gas (LNG) store, Independence, in order to have a lever of pressure on Russian Gazprom and not to give it a price increase. This was stated by the Prime Minister of the Republic Saulius Skvernelis. "It is very important for the price monopolist to be under pressure, because if we abandon the terminal, Gazprom's prices could rise to 20%," explained the head of the Lithuanian government in an interview with LRT Radijas, noting that such an increase would cost the treasury at 160 million euros per year additionally. While maintaining the LNG terminal will support competition and will not allow suppliers to pick up the cost.

At the same time, experts are not sure that it is actually more profitable for Vilnius to redeem the terminal, rather than rent it. Now, the Lithuanian company Klaipedos nafta, which is controlled by the state, pays about 60 million euros a year for leasing a gas storage vessel. The contract ends in 2024. Lithuania tried to unite with Latvia and Estonia to buy the terminal together, giving it a regional status, but Riga did not support the idea. Now half of Lithuania's needs are provided by LNG, half - ordinary natural gas supplied by pipes from Russia.