Assessment of Lithuanian Energy Generation Companies’ Infrastructure Combined with Sustainable Environment Principles

Abstract

The main task of the energy sector of today is reliable generation of safe, ecologically clean, effective and economically perspective energy. This objective may be implemented by forming the energy sector management policy, by changing and defining management and operational costs, and by assessing the impact of energy infrastructure on ecology. Therefore, the need emerges to estimate various aspects of electricity production, transmission and distribution activity by more exhaustive methods, applying environmental assessment, developing and establishing ways that may become helpful in the decision making process. At the moment the nuclear power plant still operating in Lithuania generates about 80% of the needed power output. After this power plant is closed down in 2009, the situation of energy generation will change markedly in Lithuania. The reliability of energy supply and environmental assessment serve as the ground while preparing to accept strategic decisions, which would reconcile the growing demand for energy, technological complexity and environmental problems. An extremely important factor that shows the ecological compatibility of the system is the establishment of the role of environmental protection and the consolidation of its priority role in the energy system. Therefore, ecological integration and technological innovation is presented as the main features that need assessment in order to assure fully environmentally safe energy production and transmission structure. Searching for methods of solving these issues, it is necessary to apply management and analysis methods that would combine ecological, social, technological aspects of the energy system with the sustainable environmental analysis.