EU Thumbs Up For €242 Million Lithuania’s RE Plan

• The EC is happy with Lithuania's recovery and resilience plan, assessing it positively
• Lithuania has proposed to invest €242 million on developing offshore and onshore wind as well as solar energy generation
• It should lead to the development of an additional 300 MW of solar and wind, and 200 MW of energy storage capacity
• Lithuania will also invest €341 million to phase out polluting transport vehicles and increase the share of renewable energy sources in the transport sector

The European Commission finds the Lithuanian recovery and resilience plan with a total budget of €2.2 billion is a good fit to enable the country recover strongly from the COVID-19 pandemic. None of the measures included in the plan significantly harm the environment, it found.

This positive assessment by the EC paves the way for the country to secure €2.2 billion in grants from the European Union (EU) through its Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), under the block's recovery plan called NextGenerationEU with a total budget of €800 billion (in current prices).

One of the major assessment criteria was allocation to measures that support achievement of climate objectives, and the EC found Lithuania not lacking on this front as the country has proposed to invest €242 million on developing offshore and onshore wind and solar energy generation, along with creating public and private energy storage facilities.

Specifically, it would involve the production of an additional 300 MW of solar and wind energy, and 200 MW capacity to store electricity.

The European nation has also pledged to invest €341 million to phase out the most polluting road transport vehicles and increase the share of renewable energy sources in the transport sector.

According to the EC's assessment, Lithuania has proposed to devote 38% of its total allocation to measures that support the achievement of its climate objectives. "Lithuania's plan focuses on investments and reforms that will accelerate its digital and green transitions. This includes substantial investments in clean energy and high-speed internet networks that will make Lithuania's economy more sustainable, dynamic and innovative," said EC President Ursula von der Leyen.

The EC's positive assessment will now need to be evaluated and adopted by the Council Implementing Decision that should take another 4 weeks for the EC to clear the grant. In the beginning, €289 million or 13% of the grant will be offered as pre-financing. Further disbursements will be cleared on satisfactory fulfilment of the milestones and targets outlines in the Council Implementing Decision.

A quick factsheet of the main points of the Lithuanian proposal can be viewed on the EC's website.

Earlier in 2019, the EC granted approval to Lithuania's €385 million renewables state support scheme to enable the country achieve 38% renewable energy share in its gross energy consumption by 2025, translating into 5 TWh of clean energy (see Lithuania Gets Go-Ahead For €385mn RE Scheme).

In June 2021, the Lithuanian Ministry of Energy said it will allocate an additional €2.4 million financing from the Cohesion Fund for people who would want to invest in installing their own solar power systems, in a bid to encourage more people to opt for rooftop solar power.

Under the arrangement, it offers subsidies of €243 or €323 per 1 kW system, depending on the use of inverter. In 2020, it allocated €30.2 million help people pay for their solar power systems.