Lithuania: Cementas seeks EU funds for environmental project

Akmenes Cementas, Lithuania’s only cement manufacturer, intends to invest over 20m litas (EUR 5.8m) in upgrading its pollutant filtering equipment over two years, with part of the funds expected to come from the EU’s structural funds.

"We want to renew our equipment before tighter environmental pollution control legislation comes into force in the country in 2007," Akmenes Cementas CEO Arturas Zaremba said.

The company is planning to buy filters for one of its furnaces and start upgrading work by the end of this year. It has filed an application for 5m litas in EU support funds to help finance the project with a total cost of 10.5m litas.

The upgrading of filters of another furnace should begin next year. The project will also cost more than 10m litas.The company will use its own resources to finance these projects if it receives no funding from the EU.

Akmenes Cementas posted sales of 7.746m litas for the first two months of 2005, up by 21 per cent YoY.The cement plant is located in Naujoji Akmene, in northern Lithuania.