The Green Buildings of 2017 in Lithuania announced

The annual conference of the Lithuanian Green Building Council announced the winners of the first-timer competition “Green Buildings of 2017”. This year, the “Duetto” Business Home, a project by the sustainable real estate development company YIT Kausta, has become the greenest business centre amongst the projects participating in the competition. The award of the greenest project in the category of residential houses was granted to the residential building “Aero Namai” by UAB Citus. The competition “Green Buildings of 2017” was organised by the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Green Building Council.

“The goal of this first-timer competition in Lithuania is to encourage Lithuanian real estate developers and owners to invest in environmentally and people-friendly buildings. The idea of green building is already 25 years old, however, there are only a few of them in Lithuania. We want companies and the public to realise that green buildings are not only an investment in nature conservation, but also the creation of a competitive enterprise and a sustainable future”, says Andrius Bagdonas, Director of the Lithuanian Green Building Council and an organiser of the competition.

Kęstutis Vanagas, Managing Director of YIT Kausta, the company which project received the award, said that starting the planning of “Duetto” Business Home, company had a vision to create a modern building with all the meanings – a environmentally-friendly place convenient for people who work here, meeting and adapting to the needs of individual enterprises.

“We have noticed that, with increasing environmental awareness, the need to settle in a sustainable, yet cost-effective building is becoming more and more relevant. We strive to develop long-term projects, so we are pleased that our efforts are valued by this award“, claims K. Vanagas.

The first building of the “Duetto” Business Home has already been operated by “Vilniaus Vandenys”, service centre of the credit management company “Lindorff”, and others. Construction of the second building is underway. It is expected, that the total count of employees working in both buildings will reach 1,500.

Arvydas Avulis, Chairman of the Board of the Lithuanian Green Building Council, emphasizes that the future development of green buildings will be determined not only by the desire of real estate developers to ensure that their developed buildings will remain competitive, but also by the desire of employers who rent offices to ensure the best working conditions for their employees.

“Until recently, green buildings were popular mainly amongst foreign investors, whose corporate strategies foresee the need to work in office buildings with certain certifications. However, during the last few years, we have noticed the tendency that the demand for green buildings grows both amongst foreign and Lithuanian employers. They are competing for employees, aiming to provide them with the best working conditions, and the greenery of buildings is becoming one of the motivating factors”, declares Avulis. He points out that the sustainability of residential projects is one of the factors contributing to the development of project’s exclusivity.

The jury of the competition “Green Buildings of 2017” had to assess applications by developers and owners of buildings built during 2014-2016 and entered into the “Infostatyba” database by the end of 2016 (technical projects of objects). The submitted projects were evaluated according to 10 sustainability criteria: from the energy efficiency of the building to the technology used for design or aesthetic solutions.

This year, the winners were announced in two categories – business centres and residential houses. Next year, developers and owners of industrial, commercial and entertainment projects will be invited to participate in the competition. The winners were selected by a jury consisting of representatives from business, science, and public institutions.