“Thanks to the new military camps, our soldiers will have the conditions that are necessary for NATO troops,” said Vice Minister of National Defence Vilius Semeška, attending the ceremony to start construction of the military camp in Šiauliai on October 7. In order to strengthen national security and deterrence policy, the Ministry of National Defence is expanding the infrastructure of the Lithuanian Armed Forces and has already started the construction of three such new military camps in Lithuania.
During the ceremony held in Šiauliai, V. Semeška emphasized that a developed and modern military infrastructure is very necessary for a high level of military readiness, therefore the military town project is extremely important for all of Lithuania: “By building new military towns, we are laying the foundation for the state of Lithuania – our freedom and democracy. No one else will defend the state better than our strong and professional army.”
The Vice Minister, together with the Commander of the Land Forces of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, Brigadier General Artūras Radvilas, and the Chairman of the Board of “Eika” Robertas Dargis, cast a symbolic time capsule with a letter to future generations into concrete. The capsule was placed in the foundation of the future town by Staff Sergeant Edmundas Girjotas, a soldier of the Kunigaikštis Margiris Infantry Battalion.
“One of the youngest units of the army – the Kunigaikštis Margiris Infantry Battalion of the “Žemaitija” brigade – will be located in this place. Modern infrastructure is an investment in improving the conditions of service for soldiers. The new barracks will help soldiers to plan and carry out their duties even better, will increase motivation, and will encourage new soldiers to join the service,” said Brig. Gen. A. Radvilas.
The planned area of the battalion-sized military town in Šiauliai is 7.8 hectares. Administrative and special-purpose buildings will be built in the town: barracks, a canteen, headquarters, a medical station, etc. Sports facilities and squares are also planned. Technical buildings will also be built in the town: warehouses, garages, a gas station, a car wash, and a shelter for technicians. Formation and technical squares, car parking spaces, including those specially adapted for electric cars and people with disabilities, will also be equipped.
“When at the end of 2020 we announced the Eika Group’s winning tender to build one of three military towns in Lithuania, it seemed like an important, relevant military infrastructure project, an interesting and still rare example of public-private partnership in Lithuania. We assessed the project more through an economic prism. Today, as the eighth month of the war in Ukraine approaches, it is already a valuable object for both our group and the whole of Lithuania,” said R. Dargis, Chairman of the Board of Eika.
Last year, the Ministry of National Defence signed a contract for the construction of a military town in Šiauliai with the companies “Partnerystės projektai keturi” and UAB “Samogitia miestelis” owned by this company.
The construction of the first two new military camps began a little earlier – symbolic time capsules were buried in August-September in the Vilnius district, in Rokantiškės, and in the Šilalė district, in the town of Pajūris. The construction work of these two military camps is being carried out by the company Salvinta, which belongs to the Darnu Group.
The construction partnership agreements for all three new military campuses have been signed for a period of 15 years – two and a half years for design and construction, and 12.5 years for infrastructure maintenance and servicing. The construction of these campuses is planned to be completed in late 2023 – early 2024.
The military towns are being built to house units of the Lithuanian Army’s Iron Wolf and Žemaitija brigades. Up to 2,500 soldiers and civilian employees of the national defense system will be able to serve and work in all three new towns.
The construction of three military camps is a strategic project of the Ministry of National Defence. It aims to increase Lithuania’s combat capabilities, ensure physical infrastructure for the permanent deployment of the Lithuanian Armed Forces’ combat capabilities, and strengthen defense and deterrence.
This is the first time that a project in the national defense system has been implemented through a public-private partnership. The decision to develop new military infrastructure with the help of business was made taking into account not only the ability of the private sector to develop several large-scale projects simultaneously, but also due to the large investments in the modernization of weapons and the acquisition of new defense systems in the national defense system.
