Survey: wind energy development is supported by 82 percent of Lithuania’s population

Renewable energy ideas in Lithuania are steadily expanding. A recent public survey shows that 8 out of 10 people in the country are in favour of the further development of wind energy. The implementation of the new National Energy Independence Strategy and the launching of auctions for renewable energy projects in the autumn will also highlight further developments in this sector.

Support is growing significantly

As the results of a recent public survey show, support for wind energy is growing significantly, with 82 percent of the population continuing to support this sector. This can be compared to last year, when this figure was 76 percent.

“Examining the survey data shows that the public support for wind energy development is growing steadily. This is, and will be, very important for Lithuania’s strategic goal of producing all of the needed electricity from renewable energy sources in the future. Recently, we received the European Commission’s approval for the new support scheme for renewable energy projects. The first auction for a market price premium is scheduled for this autumn, and it should reveal the potential of wind energy to expand in the near future,” said Aistis Radavičius, Executive Director of the Lithuanian Wind Power Association.

According to Mr. Radavičius, in recent years the development of wind parks in Lithuania has slowed down a little, as the first round of auctions took place in 2011-2015 and the quotas allocated during it have already been exhausted. Nevertheless, wind is already the largest source of electricity in Lithuania. More recently, in March, the sector reached an all-time high when the wind parks generated 174 GW of electricity.

Public knowledge is also improving

The public survey data also shows an interest in the wind energy sector and growing knowledge of this field.

“We are seeing active public debates on the development of renewable energy and have noticed growing public interest in wind energy. This shows the openness of Lithuanians, their willingness to understand and their contribution to changes in the energy sector,” said Mr. Radavičius.

40 percent of the population knows that there are more than 20 wind parks in Lithuania, and that the total power capacity of the installed wind power plants is over 500 MW. A similar number of them recall that the wind parks produce about 10 percent of the country’s electricity consumption.

The survey of a representative population was commissioned by the communications planning agency OMD at the request of the Lithuanian Wind Power Association. In the survey, 1,073 internet users aged 18-74 were interviewed online.