“The combined cycle unit has passed the first serious exam. It was the most important and the final test of the testing program launched in February. We hope that the facility, which will be operated by our experienced staff, will function without any major disruptions in future,” Lietuvos Energija CEO, Dalius Misiunas, said in a press release.
The unit operated at full load at the prescribed steam parameters continuously for 72 hours during the final test.
The new 455 MW unit at LPP is the largest project implemented by Lietuvos Energija so far. Spain’s Iberdrola Ingenieria y Construccion was the project’s general contractor.
The 9th unit of the LPP, which will have the efficiency of more than 58 percent, will be able to meet between 20 and 25 percent of domestic electricity demand. It will consume 30 percent less natural gas, compared with the LPP units it will replace.
The contract with Spain’s Iberdrola on the construction of the combined cycle unit was signed in April 2009. The main equipment was supplied by General Electric.
The unit cost approximately 353.6 million euros.
The project was financed by the EBRD, the company itself and the consortium of banks, including Swedbank, SEB Bankas, DnB Nord, Nordea Bank Lietuva and Danske, which extended 81.4 million euros.
State-owned Visagino Atominė Elektrinė (Visaginas Nuclear Power Plant, or VAE) holds a 96.13 percent stake in Lietuvos Energija, which is quoted on the blue-chip Main List of the NASDAQ OMX Vilnius Stock Exchange.
