The construction of the Visaginas CHP project aims to reduce dependence on imported natural gas, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow down the growth of thermal energy prices, while ensuring a high quality of service. The project will install a combined heat and power plant that will generate up to 1250 kW of electricity and 6.8 MW of thermal power. It will be the first larger ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) CHP plant in Lithuania to supply heat to Visaginas’ central heating system and generate electricity to ESO’s grid.
At this stage of the project, the TEC Consulting team is responsible for project management (EPCM) and technical supervision of the construction work. TEC Industry specialists have prepared the technical and detailed design and are supervising the project.
In preparation for the co-construction works, the boundaries of the site have been demarcated, the axes have been marked and the excavation works have started. However, the specialists had to face some challenges during the work: “This project is being implemented in a part of Lithuania that is surrounded by a large number of water bodies. We had to dig a hole almost 6 metres deep, so the penetrating water became a challenge. The weather conditions in July were not favorable, making it more difficult to carry out the necessary work. However, thanks to the professionalism and great efforts of our specialists, we achieved excellent results, and the next stages of work were continued, including the installation of the pit floors and walls,” says Justinas Vepštas, Project Manager at TEC Consulting.
The co-construction phase of the power plant is scheduled for completion by mid-summer 2025. In parallel, once the foundations and metal structures are in place, the installation of process equipment, piping, electrical and automation systems will take place. Once the construction and installation of the process equipment is complete, the commissioning phase of the plant will start in autumn 2025 under the supervision of TEC Consulting, and after successful comprehensive and warranty testing of the equipment, the project will enter into the project’s construction close-out procedures.
The project is part-financed by the EU Structural and Investment Funds and is part of the government’s Green Deal programme, and will use renewable biofuels, which will consist of shredded wood from logging residues, with the possibility of using higher-quality shredded wood in case of shortages.
“The project is expected to be officially completed by 28 August 2026, with a construction completion certificate and the client taking over the operation of the successful plant”, – says Project Director Kęstutis Kukta. Once fully operational, the plant will generate enough heat to meet the demand of the city of Visaginas in summer. It will also generate and transmit electricity to the grid, the demand for which is growing every day.
TEC Consulting and TEC Industry are part of the TEC Group of companies, which also includes TEC Infrastructure. The group provides design, consultancy, maintenance, project and construction management and other engineering services for transport infrastructure, industrial and energy facilities.
