Vitebsk region can become a leader in the use of local and alternative energy sources - Domashkevich

The Vitebsk region may take a leading position in the republic in the use of local and alternative energy sources. This point of view was expressed today during a citizens' reception by the Aide to the President of Belarus - Chief Inspector for the Vitebsk Region, Nikolai Domashkevich, BelTA reports.

The Aide to the President noted the effective work of the region's housing and communal services department in using local types of fuel, and also reported that a private company is interested in building a bioenergy plant in the Vitebsk district. The investor is ready to invest about $400 million in the project. However, for its implementation, it is necessary to allocate 12 thousand hectares of land for grasses and corn, as biogas will be produced from organic waste of livestock and silage. According to Nikolai Domashkevich, a similar project is already being successfully implemented in the Minsk district and generates a profit of 1.5 million euros.

The Chairman of the Vitebsk District Executive Committee, Ruslan Furashov, reported to the Aide to the President that detailed project development is currently underway with the investor.

According to the Department of Housing and Communal Services of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, about Br149 billion will be allocated for energy saving in 2013. The funds will be invested in converting 11 boiler houses to use local types of fuel with mechanized loading, which will reduce natural gas consumption by 14 million cubic meters per year, and increase the share of local fuel resources (LFR) in the fuel balance from 55% at the end of 2012 to 67.8% by the end of 2013. In the agro-industrial complex system, LFR will account for 28% of the total fuel balance in 2013. In general, across the region, LFR will constitute at least one-fifth of the boiler and furnace fuel.