Mixed municipal waste in the Vilnius region is being handled by companies that do not have the permits required for such activities – namely, “Ekobazė”, “Ekonovus” and VAATC. Another company, “Ecoservice”, is storing more waste than permitted. Under the contracts signed with these companies, EUR 7.2 million in fees collected from residents for waste management will be paid to companies allegedly operating in violation of the applicable requirements.
The operator of the Vilnius waste sorting plant, “Energesman”, has referred VAATC’s operation without a Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) permit to the Prosecutor’s Office.
“All companies currently handling mixed municipal waste in the Vilnius region are violating the law, yet so far everyone seems to accept these double standards. We hope that the principles of the rule of law will be restored, because at present companies favoured by the Vilnius authorities can commit offences with impunity while receiving millions of euros collected from residents,” says Algirdas Blazgys, CEO of “Energesman”.
Permitted to handle plastic – but not household waste
“Ekobazė” handles mixed municipal waste at Lentvario g. 13A, Vilnius. Under the pollution permit issued for this site (TL-V.7-49/2016), the company is authorised to handle only non-hazardous waste intended for recycling – separately collected plastic, paper, metals, glass and similar materials. This permit does not authorise the company to handle household waste.
Under the signed contract, the company will be paid EUR 2.1 million for such waste management without the required permit.
“Ecoservice” exceeds the permitted limit
“Ecoservice” handles mixed municipal waste at its site at Gariūnų g. 71, Vilnius. The pollution permit issued to the company (TL-V.7-86/2018) allows it to store no more than 800 tonnes of mixed municipal waste at this site.
“It is visually apparent that this limit is being exceeded, and the amount will increase further once the “Ekonovus” waste stream is taken over. Currently, around 250 tonnes of waste are delivered to the site every day; next week this will increase to 350 tonnes, while only a few dozen tonnes are transported for incineration. It is therefore clear that the amount of waste accumulated on the site exceeds the maximum permitted under the permit,” says A. Blazgys.
By the end of the year, “Ecoservice” is expected to receive EUR 3 million for waste management carried out in violation of the applicable requirements.
“Ekonovus” is not authorised to handle waste at all
“Ekonovus” continues to handle waste at Pramonės g. 141 in Naujoji Vilnia, despite strong opposition from local residents.
The site belongs to UAB “Šatruva”, which holds a permit to handle construction waste there (TL-V.7-52/2016). Mixed municipal waste cannot be handled at this site.
Moreover, “Ekonovus” itself has no pollution permit authorising waste management activities at Pramonės g. 141 and therefore cannot legally handle any waste there.
“Ekonovus” would also be unable to handle waste at the planned site at Sandėlių g. 12 in Vilnius, near Gariūnai. No pollution permit has been issued to the company for this address, meaning that, under the law, no waste may be handled at this location.
Moreover, the site is not equipped for waste management. It is essentially an undeveloped area without a hard surface or fencing, and no wastewater collection system is visible. A road is currently being constructed on the site to allow waste collection vehicles weighing several tonnes to access the area without getting stuck in the ground.
Under the signed contract, the company would receive EUR 2.1 million in public funds for such waste management without the required permit.
VAATC has been operating the plant without a permit for more than a month
VAATC, which took over the Vilnius mixed waste sorting plant on 24 July, has been handling waste there for more than a month without the required pollution permit (IPPC permit).
The permit is still issued in the name of “Energesman”, and the company does not agree to its transfer to VAATC while legal disputes over the lawfulness of the contract termination remain unresolved.
“We have referred the matter to the Prosecutor’s Office over potentially criminal activity, because operating without the required waste management permit is a criminalised offence in Lithuania. It is difficult to understand why no exceptions were made in our case – we were subject to extremely strict scrutiny to ensure compliance with all permit requirements. Although the emergency situation should apply equally to everyone, it is clear that this is not the case,” says A. Blazgys.
Earlier, in mid-August, the Environmental Protection Department also referred the matter to the Prosecutor’s Office, asking it to assess whether VAATC, “Ekonovus”, “Ecoservice” and “Ekobazė” are legally handling mixed municipal waste without the necessary permits.
Contract terminations are being challenged in court
Pending a final court ruling, “Energesman” maintains that both the operating and modernisation agreements for the Vilnius waste plant remain valid. The company bases its position on the terms of the operating agreement, which provides that it may be terminated only if two conditions are met – there are significant grounds for termination and 20 working days’ notice is given.
In “Energesman’s” view, the reasons cited by VAATC do not constitute significant grounds because decisions by the Vilnius Emergency Operations Centre (ESOC) and its head (ESOV) deliberately discriminated against the company, while the accumulation of waste at the plant resulted from the Vilnius combined heat and power plant being unable to accept waste for incineration, rather than from any fault on the part of the operator.
“If other companies are allowed to store more waste than their permits allow, or to handle waste without permits altogether, our contract cannot be terminated on such grounds,” A. Blazgys emphasises.
VAATC itself failed to perform the modernisation agreement and did not pay “Energesman” the EUR 4.4 million initial payment within the deadlines stipulated in the contract.
According to preliminary estimates, “Energesman’s” losses will amount to approximately EUR 20 million. These losses may increase further the longer VAATC remains in control of the plant.