One-stop-shop supporting multi-apartment renovations in Vilnius announced as finalist in 2025 European Sustainable Energy Awards

With more than two thirds of multi-apartment buildings in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius built before 1993, demand for retrofitting is high. ‘Atnaujinkime miesta’ (or Amiestas) is a public non-profit institution that supports energy-efficient refurbishment, operating as a one-stop-shop (OSS) for renovations in the city since 2020.

The challenge is considerable, but so are the rewards, explains Egle Randyte, Managing Director at Amiestas: 

'Old multi-family buildings were made to low energy efficiency standards and their condition deteriorated over time,' she says. 'Renovating them improves energy performance on a large scale, while creating more sustainable and comfortable living spaces and significantly reducing energy poverty.'

Energy renovations are daunting for many residents, with challenges including complex administrative procedures, financial barriers, and a lack of technical knowledge. 

'Recognising these obstacles, we developed the OSS model to streamline the process, provide end-to-end support, and secure favorable financing options,' says Egle Randyte. 

Renovations include improving insulation and heating systems, integrating renewable energy sources and promoting sustainable construction practices.

Amiestas works closely with residents and contractors at every step, from the very first meeting with the residents to the last stroke of paint by the contractors, taking care of administrative approvals, funding applications, tenders, and project supervision, while maintaining a constant flow of information to keep residents fully engaged.

The results speak for themselves: 

'Every renovated building moves us closer to EU net zero emissions goals. In general, multi-apartment building renovations improve energy efficiency by around 50-60%. These savings contribute not only to reduced carbon emissions but also to improving residents’ living conditions by creating modernised apartment buildings and reducing utility bills at the end of the month,' says Egle Randyte.

The project estimates it has achieved annual savings of approximately 77 GWh of electricity and 18,480 tons of CO₂. 

'To put this into perspective,' she explains, 'we achieved the same emissions savings as if we had removed over 4,000 non-electric cars from the roads, and our annual electricity savings are as much as 64,000 people use per year.'

Amiestas is now scaling up the OSS model across Vilnius by encouraging district-wide renovations and strengthening financial partnerships for affordable, long-term financing.

'Our initiative demonstrates how a structured, community-focused approach can simplify and speed up renovation processes and drive large-scale energy efficiency improvements,' says Egle Randyte, adding the model had a strong potential for replication in Lithuania and beyond.

'Vilnius can serve as a leading example and share its expertise with other municipalities. By providing guidance on establishing similar frameworks, we can help other cities implement OSS solutions, accelerating energy-efficient renovations.'

EUSEW Awards ​celebrate Europe’s best clean energy projects and leaders 

Amiestas is one of three finalists shortlisted for the European Sustainable Energy Awards 2025 in the Local Energy Action category. The award recognises implemented sustainable energy actions, driven by a group of citizens or consumers, which contribute to the clean energy transition at the community or local level. It also inspires and motivates others to implement similar steps for an EU-wide deployment, resulting in economic and environmental benefits. The other finalists in this category are proKlima in Germany and Community Energy for Social Housing in Otterbeek, Belgium. ​ 

proKlima is a public-private partnership funding clean energy projects around Hanover. Community Energy for Social Housing in Otterbeek provides renewable energy access to vulnerable tenants.

The European Sustainable Energy Awards ​(EUSEW Awards) recognise outstanding individuals and projects for their innovation and efforts in energy efficiency and renewables. The nine finalists have been selected by a high-level jury in three categories: Innovation, Local Energy Action, and Woman in Energy. The finalists will be submitted to an online public vote, which is open until 1 June, and the winners will be announced during the EUSEW Awards Ceremony on 10 June 2025. ​ 

EUSEW 2025 

European Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW), the​ biggest annual event dedicated to renewables and efficient energy use in Europe, takes place on 10-12 June under the theme of ‘Powering a fair and competitive green transition’. The event will bring together public authorities, industry, NGOs and consumers to promote initiatives accelerating decarbonisation through clean technologies and solutions towards a competitive, fair and just transition both for people and businesses.

Registrations for onsite attendance in Brussels and online participation are  now open.  

For interview requests with the EUSEW Awards finalists or additional media information, please contact ​ mediaeusew [dot] eu