Vilnius: Strengthening green requirements in road construction and catering procurement

Vilnius (Lithuania) is increasingly using public procurement to advance its environmental and climate goals. Within ChemClimCircle-2, the city is working on two procurement cases – road construction works and catering services – illustrating how mandatory green requirements can be complemented with more ambitious criteria.

In Lithuania,  environmental considerations are already mandatory in public procurement, with minimum criteria set at national level. However, contracting authorities such as Vilnius city municipality can to go beyond these baseline requirements. This is particularly relevant in a city with a strong strategic framework, including the Green City Action Plan, Sustainable Mobility Plan, and long-term climate and energy strategies, all of which prioritise emissions reduction, resource efficiency, and improved environmental quality.

Case 1: Advancing environmental criteria in road construction works

The first case focuses on the procurement of road construction and maintenance works, carried out through an open procedure. In addition to paving, the contract may include related works such as drainage system upgrades or archaeological investigations. The contract value  will be set during market consultations, with an expected contract duration of three years.

The main objective is to procure  more environmentally and climate-friendly construction works, building on existing mandatory green procurement requirements. While previous tenders already included relevant criteria, Vilnius aims to strengthen them further by introducing additional measures.

Potential CCC objectives focus on making construction processes cleaner and safer – from improving energy efficiency and promoting renewable energy to cutting  and avoiding materials that may pose environmental or health risks throughout their lifecycle.

The procurement process follows a structured approach, where the initiating department defines the need and the public procurement team ensures compliance with legal and environmental requirements. Market consultation plays a key role in shaping the final criteria. Suppliers are engaged either through written feedback or online meetings, where draft technical specifications are discussed and refined. The process is transparent, with recordings and responses made publicly available.

Building on existing criteria, this case offers an opportunity to test how far the market can go in delivering higher environmental performance. Additional criteria may be sourced from EU Green Public Procurement frameworks and other established criteria banks, depending on what proves feasible during market engagement.

Case 2: Circular and waste-reducing catering services for schools

The second case concerns the procurement of catering services for municipal kindergartens and schools, also carried out through an open procedure with a planned contract duration of one year with a possibility to extend it for and additional two years.

Here, the focus shifts from construction to everyday services, with an emphasis on reducing waste and introducing more circular solutions. The municipality aims not only to meet  mandatory environmental criteria, but also to explore innovative approaches – particularly by reducing single-use products and promoting reusable alternatives.

CCC objectives in this case include minimising food and packaging waste, improving recyclability of materials and avoiding products that may contain harmful substances, such as certain plastics or coatings. At the same time, the procurement also creates a possibility to rethink how catering services are delivered, for example by encouraging reusable containers or alternative service models.

As in the first case, the procurement process is coordinated between the initiating school and the public procurement team, with the latter ensuring that all legal and environmental requirements are met.

Market dialogue is conducted in a structured and transparent way, either through written consultations or online meetings with suppliers. These discussions allow the municipality to better understand available solutions and assess how ambitious criteria can be realistically implemented. Environmental considerations are integrated into both the technical specifications and the evaluation of economic benefit.

Because the end users are schoolchildren and staff, this procurement has a direct impact on daily life, making it important from both social and environmental perspective.

Why it matters

Together, these two cases demonstrate how Vilnius is moving beyond minimum requirements and using public procurement as practical tool to drive sustainability.

By building on mandatory national requirements and using market dialogue to test more ambitious approaches, the city is exploring practical ways to integrate climate, circular economy and environmental health considerations into both large-scale infrastructure and everyday services. This approach not only supports Vilnius’ strategic goals but also helps drive broader market change toward more sustainable solutions.

Contact details:

Edita Urbanovic, Project Manager, Vilnius City Municipality Administration

edita.urbanovic@vilnius.lt

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