The established Blue Economy sectors in Lithuania directly employ 26.6 thousand people and generate approx. €782 million in GVA (2021). The Lithuanian Blue Economy sectors represent a relatively small share of the national economy, contributing by approx. 1.5% to national GVA and 1.9% to national employment.
The size of the Blue Economy in Lithuania has been growing steadily since 2012 in terms of employment and nominal GVA, reaching its highest levels in 2019 (27.3 thousand employees) and 2021, respectively. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have much smaller in Lithuania than in other EU countries, with a drop of only 1% of GVA between 2019 and 2020.
The largest Blue Economy sector in Lithuania is Shipbuilding and repair, contributing to 30% of the country’s Blue Economy GVA and more than 37% of its workforce. The second largest Blue Economy sector is Marine living resources, representing approx. 28% of total Blue Economy GVA and nearly 32% of its employment. Next is Port activities, with a share of 22% of the national Blue Economy GVA and more than 10% of its workforce.
In the EU, Lithuania ranks 9th in employment in the Shipbuilding and repair sector.
Lithuania has 90.6 km of coastline along the Baltic sea. This extends to 262 km when taking into account the Curonian Lagoon coastline. The largest container port of the country is the Port of Klaipėda (18th in the EU), the only multipurpose, deep-water port in Lithuania, handling more than 41 million Tonnes in containerized cargo per year, followed by the Port of Butinge (2021). Fishing vessels also use small ports like Nida and Šventoji.
The Port of Klaipėda also serves as the main ferry terminal, connecting Lithuania to other Baltic and Scandinavian countries. It is a key gateway for passenger transportation, especially for ferry services to and from Germany, Sweden, and Denmark.
The Marine Research Institute is a subdivision of Klaipėda University, conducting fundamental and applied research on marine and coastal environment and maritime technologies. The Institute aims to facilitate science, study, and business cooperation, based on high-level scientific knowledge and the up-to-date open access research infrastructure of the Marine Valley.
Other national sources of information on the Lithuanian Blue Economy are:
For more national level data, please visit the Dashboards section within the EU Blue Economy Observatory, where you can also find information about Educational and Employment opportunities in the Blue Economy sectors.
