In 2015, in the heat energy sector the NCC was regulating 50 heat suppliers (33 were controlled by the municipalities, 17 were the undertakings operating on the basis of leasing (concession) agreements. The NCC performs the regulation of the heat energy suppliers producing over 10 GWh of heat energy per year; the smaller heat supply undertakings are regulated by the municipalities. In 2015, the NCC was also regulating 23 independent heat producers and 17 non-regulating independent heat producers.
In 2015, the heat suppliers regulated by the NCC produced 8 365 GWh of heat energy and serviced 699,2 thousand customers. In the market structure of the fuel used for the heat energy production the share of natural gas constituted 44,5 percent, the market share of biofuel – 53,5 percent. Among 60 municipalities of Lithuania, in 16 municipalities natural gas constituted more than 50 percent in the structure of the fuel used for the heat energy production, and in 44 municipalities the respective percentage was made up by biofuel.
Figure 1.
Predominant types of fuel used for heat energy production in individual municipalities in 2015
Source – NCC.
In 2015, the independent heat producers produced and supplied to the district heating network 2476 GWh of heat.
In 2015, the heat suppliers earned EUR 398 million in revenues (the costs by the undertakings accounted for EUR 380,54 million). After assessing EUR 2,8 million of the recovered revenues, which were not received due to the difference between the actual fuel prices and the fuel prices which had been included into the heat energy price in the previous periods, the profit in the sector constituted EUR 20,3 million.
In 2015, the heat supply undertakings regulated by the NCC made investments the value of which totaled EUR 60 million, among these EUR 19,75 million were the allocations from the European Union support funds. In 2011–2015, in the overall structure of the investments made by the heat supply undertakings the biggest part is represented by the equity and borrowings of the heat supply undertakings – approx. 65,93 percent, the part of the investments financed from the European Union funds in the overall structure of the investments varied from 24,4 percent in 2011 up to 32,73 percent in 2015; the part of the state and municipality subsidies constituted 0,66 percent (in 2011) – 0,12 percent (in 2015).
*according to preliminary data
