Klaipėda Free Economic Zone (FEZ) has received main awards in the categories of digitisation and red tape reduction in Investment Monitor’s Economic Zone Sustainable Recovery Strategies Awards, as well as additional mentions in the fields of Industry 4.0 and positive impact on the city. The awards will be presented on Wednesday during the Barcelona New Economy Week digital conference.

Klaipėda FEZ earned the overall award in the digitisation category thanks to its constant progress toward digitising the territory while developing the model of a sustainable, smart and green industrial zone as per the general EU vision. The FEZ is currently implementing or has completed projects in spheres such as smart car parking, traffic volume monitoring, the internet of things for manufacturing, green energy and others.

The other main award was received in the category of red tape reduction, with the achievement being the result of Klaipėda FEZ, the city’s municipality and Klaipėda ID working together. The ratings made note of the “green corridor”, which was completed last year and tested in practice with the new investor REHAU. This solution allows for faster issuing of construction documents for companies that invest more than 3 million euros and create at least 20 new jobs.

The awards also recognised Klaipėda FEZ’s connection to the city and its communities – the FEZ companies’ support and volunteering in the midst of the pandemic, the joint implementation alongside the city residents of an odour monitoring project and other projects. The organisers also took note of the FEZ’s initiatives in the industry 4.0 context.

According to the head of Klaipėda FEZ Eimantas Kiudulas, this recognition from Investment Monitor is a reflection of the FEZ’s persistent strategy to focus on high and higher added value operations and sustainability.

“We sometimes forget that in small countries and communities, we can more quickly and more flexibly make forward-looking decisions, which generate long-term value. This recognition should contribute to presenting Lithuania and Klaipėda to the world as being innovative, and business and innovation-friendly. We will certainly not stop in terms of promoting innovation and the reduction of bureaucracy and, together with the Klaipėda FEZ business and the city’s academic community, we will seek to further strengthen talent development, attraction and retention,” E. Kiudulas says.

Klaipėda ID head Eglė Songailienė states that the organisation is already improving and expanding the “green corridor” programme.

“Having been tested in practice, the “green corridor” has been met with growing interest from investors and intermediaries and it will continue being improved. Our next step is the optimisation of the full construction process across related institutions at the city and national levels. We are delighted to contribute to the increasingly smooth communication between business and the public sector, and even more delighted to see the results of this smooth cooperation in terms of new investors and jobs,” E. Songailienė states.

While Vida Staskonienė, the director at the Business Development department at Invest Lithuania, says that all Lithuanian free zones contribute to both investment attraction and country’s reputation.

“We are happy for the recognition Klaipeda FEZ received, as well as a modern example the zone displays. We hope that we will further showcase Lithuania as a modern and progressive country,” V. Staskonienė says.

The Investment Monitor awards were presented in a total of eight main categories this year: digitisation, COVID relief packages, local impact, new investment, red tape reduction and sustainability and environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG).

Klaipėda FEZ is the longest operating and leading free economic zone in Lithuania. Forty-five companies operate out of the 412-hectare territory, with a combined turnover of 927 million euro in 2020, with almost 478 million euro in exports.

Since Klaipėda FEZ began operating, 747 million euros have been invested in the zone with most of this sum being foreign direct investment. Over a hundred companies and almost 6,000 employees work in the territory. Investors at Klaipėda FEZ predominantly specialise in PET, electrical transport and components, food industry, industrial equipment and other spheres. Some of the companies at Klaipėda FEZ perform not only manufacturing, but also intensive scientific, research and innovation activities.

The retail chain Lidl continues its rapid development in the Kaunas region. On 23 September, Lidl opened its doors at Raudondvario pl., Ežero g. 3, and a week later, on 30 September, a new Lidl store will be opened in the Kaunas Free Economic Zone (FEZ). 

Continuing its expansion, Lidl will open another store in the Kaunas FEZ on 30 September. The new store’s working hours will be 8:00–22:00. Lidl will be the first store operating in the Kaunas FEZ, and it will complement the internal service network for employees working here as well as also being a convenient place to shop for residents of Ramučiai or surrounding settlements and for those traveling in the direction of Jonava.  

Vytautas Petružis, CEO of the Kaunas FEZ, was pleased that the expansion of Lidl will bring additional added value to all employees of the Kaunas FEZ territory.

“Lidl’s investment in the Kaunas FEZ is important for the whole territory’s community ecosystem. This is yet another German capital project and, at the same time, the expansion of the supply of services in the internal area. As the Kaunas FEZ community grows rapidly and non-stop, the implementation of the Lidl project here creates additional added value for all existing and future employees of the territory,” said Mr Petružis. 

The staff of the new store in Ramučiai will consist of about 30 employees. Lidl, which pays one of the highest average salaries in the retail market, has an average salary of all employees (according to Rekvizitai.lt as of July 2021) amounting to €1,630.92 before tax. The area of the new store’s shopping hall will be about 1,300 m2. The whole store will have 11 cash registers – five of them will be of the standard kind and six self-service cash registers will also be installed for the convenience of buyers. 

The opening of the new store in the Kaunas FEZ will take place on 30 September at 8:00. Lidl, one of the largest retail chains in Europe, currently operates in 29 countries and has more than 11,200 stores. In total, there are 58 stores of this retail chain in 23 cities of the country – Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai, Alytus, Marijampolė, Kėdainiai, Telšiai, Kretinga, Mažeikiai, Tauragė, Jonava, Panevėžys, Utena, Plungė, Palanga, Elektrėnai, Visaginas, Šilutė, Radviliškis, Vilkaviškis, and Druskininkai.

UAB Orion Global PET, the Thai group Indorama Ventures’s PET manufacturer operating in Klaipėda FEZ, has installed and launched one of Lithuania’s first solar generator fences to generate 56 kW of power. The company already prepares for its extension. The solution was implemented in cooperation with the solar energy tech company Eternia Solar LT.

The new Orion Global PET plant will produce around 55.82 MWh of green electricity a year, thus further reducing the company’s environmental footprint.

The solar fence is comprised of 156 solar panels, which do not require special maintenance and have been installed on some of the security fence surrounding the company’s territory. The new solution supplements the 300 kW solar power station installed on Orion Global Pet’s roof back in 2019. The company’s solar power plants in Klaipėda will generate around a combined 390 MWh of green electricity a year.

The company has fully tested the new power plant under real conditions. As a result, the solution is fully proven, so Orion Global PET has already launched an extension project for the solar fence, which will be completed in the first quarter of 2022.

Orion Global PET CEO Jitendra Kumar Malik says that this investment is a continued part of the Indorama Ventures group’s sustainability strategy.

“Last year, our group committed to increasing its use of renewable energy by 10% by the year 2025 through both installing power plants on roofs and on the ground and through purchasing green energy. We take pride in our Klaipėda section contributing to this goal not only in numbers but also through an innovative solution, which will offer our group experience,” J. K. Malik says.

Indorama Ventures looks to increase its use of renewable energy by 25% by the year 2030 and, through the use of more effective processes and equipment, reduce energy consumption intensity by 5% by the year 2025.

According to the head of Eternia Solar LT Andrius Džiaugys, such solar fences are popular abroad, while Lithuanian companies are only beginning to discover them now.

“Such power systems are never standard for either clients or suppliers. Therefore, when designing them, it is necessary to evaluate the surrounding environment carefully, the solution must be safe, easily maintained, generating the maximum amount of energy possible, and, of course, able to perform the traditional functions of a security fence,” A. Džiaugys says.

According to Eimantas Kiudulas, the head of Klaipėda FEZ, Orion Global PET’s example showcases that nearly all companies have room for innovation and sustainable solutions.

“Such photovoltaic fences remain a novelty in Lithuania, and so, it is excellent that our business community member will serve as a practical example and will be able to share its experience with other interested businesses. Furthermore, as we encourage business innovation and sustainable solutions, we are also always supportive of and assist the investor community in implementing such initiatives,” E. Kiudulas says.

Other Klaipėda FEZ business community members include UAB NEO GROUP, UAB Retal Baltic Films, UAB Glassbel Baltic, UAB Vingės Logistika and other companies have solar power plants on their buildings.

 

Vilmers UAB, a private company, invests over EUR 20 million in the Šiauliai FEZ. The company is part of a group Neaustinių medžiagų fabrikas established by entrepreneur Stanislovas Grušas. Earthworks have already been started for a factory 42,000 sq. m in area. It is estimated that 300 new jobs will be created on completion of construction and installation of process lines. The Ministry of Economics and Innovation has granted the future company the status of a major investment project.

Investments in the new factory’s automated warehouses, robots and logistic solutions will be made. At present Vilmers UAB employs almost 500 people. When construction of the new factory in Šiauliai FEZ is completed, the number will be increased to as many as 800.

Vilmers UAB has faced the challenge of raw materials deficiency just like many other production enterprises. The prices for raw materials have spiked, as a result of which the company had to increase prices for its finished products, however, it continues operating profitably and receives many orders. In 2020, the company’s profit increased 37%; a significant growth in sales is observed this year.

The majority of Vilmers’ upholstered furniture is exported to France, Norway and Finland. It is reported that the company is increasing its product prices in order to manage exponential growth. At present, 139 furniture models are produced at the factory. A model is comprised of as many as 7 components that can be arranged according to the customer‘s wishes. In this way a basic upholstered item is developed into a number of options that can be treated as almost unique designs.

An important novelty is that the company will seek the status of an educational institution having the right to train furniture upholsterers under a special training programme. There is a great shortage of specialists in this profession in the market. The company intends to discuss this with relevant authorities in the nearest future. It is expected that on completion of training people will remain in the company – in this way, shortage of specialist workers will be avoided.

This year, two new investors came to Šiauliai FEZ: Bar Cargolift, a German manufacturer of tail lifts, and a Vilmers UAB, a company with Lithuanian capital invested that produces upholstered furniture. Good luck in attracting new investors!