EU Tracker – Local heating and cooling plans in Lithuania
Summary
What is the status of the transposition of Art 25.6(EDD) and its implementation ?
Lithuania is well prepared to implement EED Article 25.6 in terms of regulation, while improvement is needed for support and staffing resources.
Lithuania has a well-developed regulatory framework in place for strategic local heat planning. Local authorities and heat suppliers share responsibility for developing strategic heat management plans with complementary investment plans, which should be aligned to national energy and climate targets and objectives, and coordinated with spatial development plans. The technical and financial support framework mainly target project-specific measures and not strategic integrated energy planning. Lithuanian local authorities are constrained by limited staffing resources to draft local heating and cooling plans, as well as access energy-related geodata. In Lithuania, energy planning is in practice mostly conducted by energy companies, often executed through external contractors. Larger municipal involvement in the development of heat plans in Lithuania is desirable, and substantial investment and training to build staffing capacities are needed.
Detailed assessment
The legal framework and the obligations
An obligation for developing a heat management plan aligned with national energy and climate targets and objectives, and coordinated with spatial development plans
Overview of the legal frameworks per governance level
| National | Lithuania’s heat sector is subject to a multitude of legislations, driven by its extensive use of district heating and focus on energy security goals. Lithuania’s draft update of the national energy and climate plan 2021-2030 (NECP) has largely been based on the National Energy Independence Strategy (NEIS) approved in 2012 and amended in 2018. The NEIS is the main strategic document for energy in Lithuania. The draft NECP has upgraded the renewable energy source targets to reach 74,1 % in total heating and 90 % in district heating in 2030 (with local biofuels as the main contributor), with complementary measures defined. The Law on Energy, adopted in 2002 and last amended in 2023, regulates specific obligations for stakeholders involved in the production, distribution and supply, sale and consumption of energy in Lithuania. |
| Local | Article 8 of the Law on the Heat Sector (IX-1565), adopted in 2003 and latest amended in 2019, requires municipalities to prepare a heat sector development plan that must be approved by the municipal councils. The plan must fulfil and implement the national energy objectives, as set out in the National Energy Independence Strategy, should concern a number of other laws, including Law on increasing Energy Efficiency and building regulations, and be aligned with municipal spatial development plans. The law also sets criteria for the use of heat from renewable sources generated by independent producers. The amendments adopted in 2023 complement the municipal plan with a ten-year investment plan developed by heat suppliers, which must be approved by local councils. |
Content of local heating and cooling plans according to the law
The heat plans defined in the law on the heating sector (IX-1565) shall define the objectives, tasks, measures and expected results of the development of heat supply systems in the municipality for a period of at least 10 years. The plans include an assessment of the current heating supply and demand structure, an assessment of the potential and feasibility of using local and renewable energy sources for heat production and consideration to the heating costs for end consumers and the environmental impact of heat. The plan should also define existing and newly planned areas of heat consumers through which criteria for specific heating systems and sources are set. The plan should be drawn up with the participation of energy sector stakeholders and by heat consumer protection organisations. The 2023 amendment to the law introduces an obligation for heat suppliers to draft a 10-year ‘Heat Economy Development Investment Plan’, which outlines the strategic direction and investments for heating, which must be submitted for approval to the municipal authority. The heat investment plan shall cover various areas, including estimating future heating demand, planned investment needs, supply system development, energy resource demand, renewable energy and waste heat integration, and should include measures to increase the energy efficiency and reduce energy poverty. It should also be coordinated with spatial development plans, in which municipalities define heating zones based on the heat development and investment plan. Energy suppliers are responsible for publishing the investment plan and ensure its regular implementation and assessment. The plan must be updated every 3 years.
The support framework
An insufficient support framework accessible to local authorities and highly constrained staffing resources
Lithuania’s government provides some technical and financial support for energy planning, which however is mainly targeted towards energy suppliers and often is provided on a project basis. Municipalities have very limited staffing resources to carry out heat plans, which are mainly conducted by energy companies and to various degree outsourced to external contractors. This likely limit their abilities to integrate heat planning in integrated and strategic energy planning approaches. Data accessibility for these purposes also faces similar deficits.
Provided Support
| Technical and organisational | 2/5 | The national government provides some technical support for heat planning, mainly through various national agencies and organisations, including the Lithuanian Environmental Project Management Agency (APVA) and the Lithuanian Energy Institute (LEI). This support is however mainly targeting heat suppliers, while tehnical support for heat planning to loal administrations remains very limited. |
| Financial | 2/5 | There is no long-term and dedicated financial support provided to local authorities to support heat planning, and financial support in Lithuania related to heat planning remains largely project-based. Financial support is mainly targeted towards transitioning from fossil fuels to more sustainable sources like biomass. This shift has been largely funded by EU Structural Funds. Small electricity producers (under 500 kW) are incentivized for 12 years through a national support scheme offering price premiums for renewable energy, priority transmission, and other benefits. However, the rise of biomass has reduced heating prices and consequently dampened energy efficiency investments. While financial support often favours remote regions, it is mostly directed to companies, not municipalities, primarily for constructing fourth-generation networks (4GDH). EU funding has mainly been channelled through the Lithuanian Environmental Project Management Agency (APVA). For instance, from 2019-2022, EUR 21.7 million was allocated for transitioning to efficient heating solutions. Additionally, the Recovery and Resilience Facility offers households a 50% support for adopting renewable heating and cooling systems. |
| Staff & skills | 2/5 | In Lithuania, human resources for energy planning are insufficient. In most municipalities no staff resources or training are dedicated solely to energy planning (except for Vilnius, its capital). Lacking staff allocation and skills support through training programs, local authorities currently lack sufficeint knowledge and skills on energy related aspects to undertake integrated strategic heat planning. The lack of municipal participation and reliance on external contractors in the preparation of heat plans, in part related to their limited staffing resources, raises concern over the extent of which municipalities can influence their planning and their propoer integration with other spatial development plans and strategies. |
| Access to data | 2/5 | Lithuanian local governemnts are eligible to access most energy-related geodata needed for heat planning purposes. However, such data has however not been made readily available to local athorities for the purposes of heat planning through centralised databases, as heat planning is mainly executed by energy companies and external contractors. In terms of data accessibility from buildings, there is an obligation to provide data on energy demand only for district heating, while there are no such obligations for gas and electricity. Municipalities can access information related to buildings also from the real estate registry, including heating systems, heating fuels, and energy performance. There is a lack of reliable data on the potential for renwable energy sources within municipalities. |
