Close to EUR 1 million-worth renewable energy generating systems will allow the faculty students majoring in Renewable Energy Engineering to gain valuable experience of working with the latest renewable energy technologies. This is the first laboratory of such scale to be used for teaching in Eastern Europe.
Until now the 15,000 m2 KTU building has been heated using the Kaunas district heating system, costing the university more than EUR 80,000 per year (in 2014 the building consumed 951 MWh of energy for the heating needs alone). Another EUR 50,000 goes for covering the electric bill issued by the local power distributor (in 2014 the building consumed 402 MWh of electrical power).
Therefore, the giant laboratory of renewable energy sources will not only serve as a great teaching aid, but also fulfil the energy needs and significantly cut the University’s utility expenses. The photovoltaic roof system will produce energy needed for the lighting and other faculty needs, including the proper functioning of the building’s heat pumps. Meanwhile, the underground water system will produce all the heating energy needed during the cold season. The entire project shall be financed from the Lithuanian Environmental Investment Fund (LEIF) in charge of allocating the EU support for boosting the use and development of renewable energy sources.
“The implementation of these new energy production systems will allow to generate about 375 MWh of electrical power and approximately 835 MWh of heating energy each year. It will also contribute to reducing the yearly CO2 emissions by more than 318 tons. This way the faculty and the entire University will further reduce its carbon footprint and make a small, yet still significant step towards a greener and more sustainable future,” said the head of the project and the Department of Electric Power Systems at KTU Faculty of Electrical and Electronics Engineering prof. Saulius Gudzius.
