The €10m ($11.7m) plant is planned to start operating by the end of the year, with its hydrogen to be used for the city’s first hydrogen-powered buses.

According to Gijos, a Vilnius municipality-owned utility company, it will produce up to 1.4 million cubic metres of hydrogen annually, and up to 3.24 million when it reaches maximum operation – around 125 and 290 tonnes per year respectively.

The project, which also includes a public hydrogen refuelling station, is being jointly undertaken by Gijos and EPC firm, MT Group. It will be located next to a heat and power plant, capitalising on existing electricity generation.

€5.6m ($6.6m) of the plant’s funding came from the EU, which pledged €36m ($42m) in support to Lithuania under the European Hydrogen Bank auction in March 2025.

The remaining funds came from the city’s municipal budget.

Airidas Daukšas, Lithuania’s Vice Minister of Energy, said that developing the country’s hydrogen infrastructure will allow effective utilisation of its growing renewable energy production capacity.

By 2030, Lithuania aims to establish 1.3GW of electrolysis capacity to produce at least 129,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually.

MT Group is also developing the country’s first green hydrogen hub at the Port of Klaipéda, which will produce 500kg of green hydrogen on-site per day.