VERT draws the attention of contractors and residents to the fact that most violations occur during careless earthworks, when electrical and natural gas networks are damaged, mainly in August and September.
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“When thousands of users lose power during a storm – that is a natural disaster. When hundreds of users lose power because no one checked where the cable or gas pipeline runs before the work – that is a decision that could have been avoided. Before starting work, it is necessary to prepare and find out whether there are underground engineering networks in the planned location to avoid energy supply disruptions and additional costs,” says VERT member Karolis Januševičius.
According to VERT data, most violations occur during earthworks, ground leveling, construction, tree cutting, and pruning of greenery, as well as when above-ground energy networks are hit by machinery or vehicles. Most often, such violations are committed by construction contractors, farmers, and individuals who do not comply with the requirements in the protection zones of energy facilities or have not checked where the underground networks are.
About three-quarters of cases involve electrical network violations, and one-fifth involve natural gas network violations.
On average, about 20% of these violations are committed by individuals. Although the majority of violations are still committed by legal entities – responsibility is assigned to the individual. VERT examines an average of 350 administrative offenses per year arising from electrical and natural gas network violations, imposing fines ranging from 15,000 to 30,000 EUR.
The largest fine after investigating an incident in 2026 was 1,200 EUR, the smallest – 150 EUR.
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This year, in the first half, VERT received 137 reports of administrative offenses. The total value of damage caused to energy infrastructure this year already amounts to nearly 195,000 EUR.
VERT emphasizes that before starting excavation, drilling, or other construction works, it is necessary to ensure that underground energy infrastructure – electrical, gas, water, or heating networks – will not be damaged.
Unauthorized earthworks, interruption, or damage to engineering networks will require the person to compensate the network owners and other electricity users for the losses incurred: ESO must be compensated for all losses related to the repair and losses of the electrical or gas network, which in many cases range from several hundred to several thousand euros, as well as damage caused to users.
Besides financial losses, such incidents can also have severe consequences for health and life. Damaging underground energy networks increases the risk of accidents.
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