Heat consumption decreased, but fuel prices remain high

In the first quarter of the year, the customers of Utilitas, Estonia’s largest renewable energy producer, used almost a tenth less heat for heating buildings and domestic water, than in the same period last year, but due to high fuel prices, energy production costs remain high.

Heat production by Utilitas decreased by 9% compared to the first quarter of 2021, electricity production remained at the same level. In the first quarter the company generated 895,000 MWh of energy across Estonia, of which green energy accounted for 60%. Thanks to the use of renewable energy sources Utilitas avoided 98,500 tons of carbon dioxide emissions in the first quarter of this year, which would have been emitted into the atmosphere if using fossil fuels.

While last winter, especially in February, the weather was very cold, the first three months of 2022 were warmer than average – in February the temperature was 3.6 degrees above average. Nevertheless, we saw higher-than-usual costs for energy production in the beginning of the year due to rising fuel prices on the world market and the start of the Russia-Ukraine war.

“Our cogeneration plants and boiler houses are able to use different fuels efficiently, and thanks to the use of local renewable wood chips, we were able to avoid the multiple price increase this winter that hit households using natural gas. Although the increased demand for wood chips from last year has also led to an increase in its price, it has been lower than that of natural gas,” explained Priit Koit, the Head of the Utilitas Group. “Unfortunately, we had to use expensive natural gas during winter peak hours, and we are already looking for various alternatives to replace it in the next heating season.”

Utilitas has increased the share of renewable energy in its energy production year by year with the aim to achieve climate neutrality by 2030 at the latest. “In the light of recent events, it is clear that the issue is not only about solving common climate concerns, but it is equally important to ensure Estonia’s energy security and independence. We hope, that in this new situation, a greater mutual understanding of different parties has risen, and new renewable energy production capacities will soon be established in Estonia,” said Priit Koit.

In the first quarter of 2022, the Utilitas Group’s company OÜ Utilitas Wind acquired Grobina wind farm in Latvia with a total capacity of 19.8 MW, which is one of the largest in Latvia. The installation of the first wind turbines in the Utilitas Targa wind farm in Latvia, with a total capacity of 58.8 MW, also began.

At the end of last year, the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority of Estonia (TTJA) initiated the procedure for the building permit and the environmental impact assessment of the planned offshore wind farm in the Gulf of Riga. Cooperation with landowners across Estonia to erect wind turbines on their lands is also taking place.

Utilitas is the largest district heating company and producer of renewable energy in Estonia. The company supplies heat to 177,000 households in eight Estonian cities: Tallinn, Maardu, Keila, Rapla, Haapsalu, Kärdla, Jõgeva and Valga, and they also provide a district cooling service in Tallinn. The group’s companies operate three biofuel cogeneration plants, 26 boiler houses, one wind farm and nine solar power plants.