Lithuania proposes to change the plan: We offer real energy dependency, but there are a few
The current geopolitical situation and the threat of a climate change crisis should accelerate the development of renewable energy sources in Lithuania. However, the large-scale outbreak of green energy is hampered only by the country’s completely disorganized legal framework. Most administrative and regulatory barriers are easily removed and could strongly push Lithuania towards energy freedom.
Today, the issue of Lithuania’s energy independence is increasingly being raised. Probably no one would want to wake up one morning without electricity or the ability to heat their home. Fuel prices are also rising, leading to many consumers not being able to pay for heating services or fuel. We can no longer look back at written fuels, not only because of the pressure of the climate change path, but also because of moral responsibility. Renewable energy is a promising alternative to oil and gas, but according to the organization Circular Economy, it is still presented in Lithuania with many obstacles.
The Lithuanian government has set a goal that by 2030 the share of renewable electricity in the balance of electricity consumption will be 50%, and by 2050 electricity and heating will be produced only from renewable sources. However, the Circular Economy points out that the real threat of climate change and the current geopolitical situation call for these goals to be achieved ten years ahead of schedule.
“100% renewable electricity in 2040 is a real opportunity for Lithuania to become an energy independent country and an EU leader in the fight against climate change. However, such ambition will only be realistic when the development of solar and wind energy becomes twice as fast as it is now. Our organization finds that the main barriers to the development of solar and wind energy in Lithuania are the designation of suitable areas, unexplored land use opportunities and the administrative burden faced by renewable energy developers and residents. In addition, we provide easy-to-implement solutions, ”says Domantas Tracevičius, director and founder of Žiedinė ekonomika.
Domantas Tracevičius
The proposals that have led to the rapid development of renewable resources are being presented to the public today. These changes to the law would also ensure that solar and wind energy projects contribute to the well-being of the community and do not compete with changing natural areas.
The main obstacle in wind energy is the active allocation of suitable areas for its development
Currently, the site is best suited for wind farms without causing community dissatisfaction or negative environmental impacts. 2016 The European Commission has issued recommendations calling on developers of wind energy projects to provide long-term support to communities and municipalities living next to wind farms. At present, the owners of the land where the power plant is being built in Lithuania receive a one-time compensation. Although project implementers often voluntarily commit to supporting communities, for example by investing in various community activities, the Circular Economy introduces regulated and long-term financial compensation to the Lithuanian government, which is distributed among municipalities between and near the communities.
![Lithuania proposes to change the plan: We offer real energy dependency, but there are a few](https://g2.dcdn.lt/images/pix/746x497/x67SYJYUOFU/vejo-jegaines-pagegiuose-88785639.jpg)
“Legislation requiring long-term funding for nearby municipalities and neighboring communities has recently been proposed in Estonia. According to the Estonian government, they are helping to deal with potential corruption and improving the relationship between the population and electricity producers. Municipalities and communities are expected to be more active in encouraging wind energy companies to develop projects in their area. The measure was justified in Germany, where energy developers pay 0.0002 euros for each kilowatt-hour of electricity produced near wind farms, ”said Živilė Mantrimaitė, Renewable Energy Project Manager at Žiedinė ekonomika.
Only a small change is needed for a real breakthrough in solar power
In order to achieve the government’s goal of installing 1 gwatt of solar power plants by 2025, the biggest challenge is becoming a suitable supply for the development of solar power plants. Complaining to business and disagreeing with the policy on potential locations for the construction of solar power plants, he says that there are still places in Lithuania where solar power plants could stand without disturbing nature or agriculture. Such sites can become exploited quarries, wells and obsolete landfills. The construction of solar power plants in these places is hampered by little bureaucratic obstacles, the removal of which allows Lithuania to take care of all the necessary solar energy.
According to the National Land Service, over 24,000 ha of Lithuanian land are damaged and not used. Not all of these areas would be suitable for re-use, but some would need to be adapted for solar power parks. For example, the Fabijoniškės landfill was closed in 1987 – an area of 15 hectares, which could be used to establish a solar park and provide electricity to the surrounding houses. There are about 800 such and similar closed landfills in Lithuania.
![Lithuania proposes to change the plan: We offer real energy dependency, but there are a few](https://g2.dcdn.lt/images/pix/746x492/73m3srDVHWk/saules-elektrines-84862835.jpg)
The Circular Economy also offers proposals to encourage the installation of solar power plants in agricultural areas for the benefit of lower-density and financial farmers. According to the organization’s calculations, to implement the 1 gigawatt target, it would be sufficient to allocate no more than 1% of the meadows and pastures currently declared in Lithuania and solar power plants installed in them with a density not exceeding 0.2 megawatts per hectare. Power plants set up in this way would allow animals to graze, for example, the link between producers and the symbiotic communities created by electricity – sheep would peel off the grass that is blocking the sun’s access to the modules and the solar modules would provide shade or shelter for the animals. Similar solar power parks are already operating in Europe, but it is still difficult to reconcile agriculture and electricity generation in Lithuania. Under current Lithuanian law, farmers who want to lease land to solar park developers would lose the permanent payment they receive because they would have to change the use of the land.
Why not use the roofs of apartment buildings and commercial buildings?
Thousands of individual homeowners have already benefited from the support and have installed solar power plants on the roofs of their homes. However, there is a lack of areas to build solar power plants on the ground, another option is to expand solar power capacity on the roofs of buildings in cities. The potential capacity of solar power plants installed on the roofs of apartment buildings in the eight largest cities of Lithuania is 272 megawatts. And with the addition of commercial and public buildings and parking lots, that number would jump significantly.
At the beginning of Lithuania’s discussions, some countries and cities in Europe have already taken steps to make the most of the roofs of their buildings. In 2021, the Berlin Senate passed the Solar Act. It provides for the obligation to install solar power plants on the roof of all newly built and renovated residential buildings with an area of more than 50 m². It is also stated that homeowners who do not have the financial resources to install solar power plants can hand over their roof to developers of solar energy projects. The city senate also makes it mandatory to install solar power plants on the roofs of all public buildings. A similar path is followed in France, where from 2023 the news and renovation of commercial buildings, and from 2024 and parking lots, will have to devote part of its roof to the construction of solar power plants.
![Viking Malt Solar Power Plant](https://g2.dcdn.lt/images/pix/746x419/98z1nlylCQs/saules-elektrine-viking-malt-77424553.jpg)
Viking Malt Solar Power Plant
© Photo by Viking Malt
The Circular Economy has submitted proposals on how to ensure the largest possible operation of solar power plants in Lithuanian cities. They call for the installation of solar power plants on their roofs to be made compulsory during the renovation or construction of apartment buildings, public buildings and the construction of new car parks. If it seemed too expensive to build solar power plants during the renovation, apartment building administrators could rent a roof to solar project developers.
Time for an alternative strategy for the development of renewable resources
The circular economy has no doubt that these and other proposals set out the government’s goals, and even more so, will ensure that the world does not feel the painful effects of climate change. The proposals also mention measures taken by the consumer and created suitable market conditions for developers of renewable resources. “Alternative solutions would direct the development of renewable energy resources in a suitable and sustainable way, without using taxpayers’ finances and protecting the most beautiful corners of the Lithuanian landscape and nature. At the same time, they would significantly speed up the installation of wind and solar parks and allow us to achieve more than the goals set by the government in the fight against change, ”says Ž. Mantrimaitė.
The study is available for download here.