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In 2004, Lithuania  approved  the  National  Housing  Strategy  by  2020, including a key target to secure apartment building renovation, simultaneously cutting on energy costs. Pursuant to the strategy, an Apartment Building Renovation (Modernisation) Programme was developed in 2005 (here in after the Programme), with key focus on improved energy performance of apartment building with lowest energy performance.

For  a  number  of  years,  however,  the  Programme  has  met  with  a number of obstacles, and therefore in the period of 2005 to 2012, just  over  400  apartments  building  were  renovated  nationwide.  Economic crisis may have played a part here, yet national experts believe key reason behind was inadequate mechanism of apartment building renovation; not only were the apartment owners required to take action and arrange for renovation of their apartment buildings; they were further  responsible  for  overseeing  construction  works,  and  securing  credits on their own.

In 2013, the new Government, being aware of the importance of apartment building renovation programme, took on some key changes.  It  has  examined  the  current  situation  (at  the  time,  as  little  as  a  dozen  apartment  buildings  were  renovated  nationwide,  and  sought  ways to turn the policy on energy performance in a favourable direction.

In the early 2013, the Government, relying on the conclusions of the  analyses  conducted,  and  insights  offered  by  national  experts  in energy, finance, and economy, presented to the public a new model of  apartment  building  renovation  programme  primarily  targeting  improved energy performance of apartment building with lowest energy performance.

Essentially, under the new model, apartment owners are no longer required to take on any obligations (whether in terms of organisation, or credit), or other project implementation risks. The apartment owners are now essentially required to offer their general  consent  to  the  implementation  of  investment  projects on improved energy performance, and, without any further costs, repay the investment granted to respective apartment building using funds saved in the form of municipal charges.

The new model focuses on municipalities as a key to successful renovation. Every local municipality has been called to select apartment buildings with lowest energy performance, and then to arrange for drafting and presentation to the local residents of investment renovation projects.  Subject  to  an  approval  by  the  apartment  owners,  the  administrators  appointed  by  municipalities  are  now  in  charge  of  funding and quality and renovation management. Besides, it is on the administrators  appointed  by  municipalities,  rather  than  on  the  local residents, that the responsibility for the performance is now placed.

Now that over 3 years have passed since the reform of the above Programme of renovation of apartment buildings, the new model has clearly  brought  an  impetus  to  the  renovation  processes  that  have  been stalling for a decade. Since 2013, over 1,100 apartment buildings  have  been  renovated  in  Lithuania,  while  renovation  of  another  800 apartment buildings is still ongoing. Consequently, by late 2016, completion  of  over  1,500  apartment  building  renovation  projects  is  expected,  including  80%  projects  to  be  implemented  based  on  the  new  Programme  model,  involving  municipalities  (with  the  remaining  20% of the projects to be completed based on initiative of residents, i.e. using the old model of renovation).

While  the  Government  focuses  on  the  long-term  renovation  of  apartment  buildings,  it  does  not  neglect  quality  of  renovation  (compared  to  increased  scale  of  the  Programme). Approval of the new renovation model was followed by a detail review and stricter quality monitoring and control system in the building sector. To make sure the renovation runs smoothly and transparently, the procurement system of works was completely rearranged, and todate, procurements are mainly conducted via the Central Contracting Authority.

The progress demonstrated by Lithuania implementing apartment building renovation programme is reflected by both an increased confidence of local residents in renovation processes, and by assessment by the institutions of the EU, as well as by the governments of other EU Member States, that expect to share our experience in the sector.

A successful apartment building renovation programme is but the first step in order to secure greater national energy performance. It is now clear that as long as renovation involves individual buildings, as  long  as  renovation  programmes  exclude  districts  or  groups  of  buildings, as long as integrated measures of improvement of energy performance are not chosen and implemented adequately, a marked energy  performance  remains  out  of  reach  on  municipality  and  even  more so, on the national level.

The Government has therefore, in light of key advantages offered by the new model of renovation, drafted further trends on enhancement of energy performance; the proposals on the table concern moving from renovation of individual buildings to integrated measures of improvement of energy performance, including renovation of heat generation and supply sector, street lighting grids, engineering infrastructure etc.

To ensure improvement of an integrated district energy performance, the Lithuanian Government has, in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, launched a pilot project on enhancement of district energy performance across 3 municipalities here in Lithuania, intended to develop a platform to serve as a basis for an-going integrated district renovation.

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