Last autumn, joint-stock company Sakret Holdings ("Sakret") started the development of a solar panel park on its production site in Rumbula, Ropazu municipality. Work is currently underway on the installation of 518 solar panels, which is expected to be completed this spring. The project, supported by the European Union's Recovery Fund, will generate environmentally friendly energy which the company will use for the production of building materials.
"Sakret's business model is based on four of the seventeen UN Sustainable Development Goals, including responsible consumption and production, and affordable and renewable energy. The support of the Recovery Fund provides additional motivation to initiate greater change and strive towards the Sustainable Development Goals. We very much anticipate and appreciate that this support is available. This is the first major project of its kind for Sakret and we hope to build solar parks for self-consumption in Lithuania and Estonia as well. In Latvia, the energy from solar panels will help to provide half of the energy we use for our production processes during the year. Looking at other benefits, this project has also helped to clean up the factory site to promote its meaningful use," says Andris Vanags, Chairman of the Sakret Supervisory Board.
"Sakret" representatives recognise that the development of the solar park is not only an economic benefit for the company, but also contributes to climate change mitigation. The company also has other sustainability goals, such as reducing CO2 emissions from sand drying by 10% by 2025.
The company manufactures and sells dry and ready-to-use building materials. This is one of the leading manufacturers of building materials in the Baltics, and in total it owns four factories in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The turnover of "Sakret" in 2023 reached 29.7 million EUR. It is planned to invest 250 000 EUR in the project, and the planned amount of capital discount from the funds of the European Union Recovery Fund is 55 000 EUR.
The European Union Recovery Fund is a centrally managed budget program of the European Commission, which aims to support reforms and investments related to the transition to a green and digital economy, as well as to mitigate the social and economic impact of the crisis. The plan envisages support in six areas, including the achievement of climate goals.
The reforms and investments of the Recovery Fund in Latvia are financed from the European Commission Recovery and Resilience Facility, with co-financing from the state budget.
For more information, please see esfondi.lv.
The material was created with the financial support of the European Union in the framework of the project "Strengthening Communication Capacities on the Benefits of the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism Plan", using the Technical Support Tool managed by the Directorate General for Structural Reform Support of the European Commission. The content of the material is solely the responsibility of the author(s). The material expressed does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union.
