“Twinsbet” Arena receives an exceptional BREEAM certificate: it is among the most sustainable buildings in the country

Last year, the renovated Vilnius “Twinsbet” Arena received international acclaim. The capital’s largest event space has been awarded the BREEAM Sustainable Buildings Certificate, which is only awarded to buildings that meet incredibly high sustainability standards.

BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is the world’s longest-established and most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings, awarded to buildings that are designed, built and operated to high sustainability standards.

According to this rating system, buildings that earn BREEAM certification fall into one of five categories: “Pass” (30-45%), “Good” (45-55%), “Very Good” (55-70%), “Excellent” (70-85%) and Outstanding” (85% or more).

Vilnius “Twinsbet” Arena received a great score of 74.6% and was rated Excellent, which, according to sustainability technology company Smart CRE, is a category that only about a tenth of all BREEAM-certified buildings in the world can boast.

“We are very pleased and proud of this achievement as we consider sustainability an important part of our business vision. We are the oldest Arena in Lithuania and one of the oldest buildings in our country to receive a high BREEAM certificate, so this is not only a great appreciation of our work but also an impetus to move forward,” – says the Head of the Arena – Andrius Žiauberis.

Lithuania boasts almost 150 BREEAM-certified buildings, most ten years old or younger. At the same time, the “Twinsbet” Arena, with a score of 74.6%, became the highest-scoring building in the country’s top five BREEAM-certified buildings.

The capital’s arena opened in 2004. It was the first multi-purpose event space in Lithuania and remains the only private arena in the country today. As the arena enters its 20th year, it has invested almost EUR 11 million in renovating.

“We have focused on sustainability in the renovation of the arena and have made a wide range of improvements, including replacing 2000 of the building’s luminaires with LEDs, refurbishing most of the equipment in all the arena’s bars, upgrading the waste sorting system, introducing water and electricity saving systems, and creating a car sharing system for employees,” – reveals the Arena’s Engineering projects manager Andžej Karžanovič.

The project focused on improving acoustics, lighting, and the visitor experience, while the building’s sustainability-focused on saving energy resources and improving the environment for the arena’s employees.