in line with best global practices. Administration of the employment relations of the Group was started through UAB Verslo Aptarnavimo Centras in the beginning of 2015. The Group has also centralized the management of vehicles - it started organizing a unified procurement of vehicle rental services for 17 companies of the Group on 3 April 2015. Such decisions are expected to help save costs for the administration of the vehicle fleet of the Group. The common principles of the vehicle fleet management have already rendered benefits to the Group - having optimized the vehicle fleet in 2013 - 2014, some cars were abandoned. The purchased services will include vehicle rental, supervision, insurance, repair works, technical maintenance thereof and other services. In June-July, Lietuvos Energija optimized the use of office premises located in Vilnius and thus plans to save about EUR 1 million during the period of three years and to create conditions for employees of the Group to be in closer cooperation. Centralization and optimization of the management of real estate allowed the Group to reduce its expenses for rent of premises by almost a third and occupied areas - by three times throughout Lithuania in 4 years. It is estimated that the office area used by Lietuvos Energija Group in Lithuania decreased by 13 percent due to the optimization. Vacated office premises covering about 4000 square meters in the central and industrial parts of Vilnius were placed on the market. Upon the completion of the optimization project, offices of Lietuvos Energija, Lietuvos Energijos Gamyba, Lietuvos Duju Tiekimas, Energijos Tiekimas, LITGAS, Duomenų Logistikos Centras and Technologijų ir Inovacijų Centras are set up in the building located at Žvejų g. 14, headquarters of administrations of distribution operators LESTO and Lietuvos Dujos are set up at Aguonų g. 24/26 and those of Lietuvos Dujos Vilnius branch, NT Valdos and VAE SPB at Smolensko g. 5. Verslo Aptarnavimo Centras was left in the building located at Lukšio g. 5B and LESTO Vilnius accounting group - at Lukšio g. 1. Technical divisions of Elektros Tinklo Paslaugos and LESTO continue operating in the premises located at Motorų g. 2 and the training centre of energy specialists - at Jeruzalės g. 21.
INTERIM REPORT FOR H1 of 2015 Key financial indicators
Planned single integrated business management system On 14 August 2015, Lietuvos Energija announced about its plans to transfer to a single integrated business management system, thus seeking to increase its operating efficiency, flexibility and to create better possibilities for expansion. The estimated duration of the project of exceptional scope is three years. The company will publish an international open tender procedure for the selection of an implementer of the integrated business management system, which would cover common business management, accounting and customer service as well as technological asset management information systems. The implementer will also have to provide support services for three years after the deployment of the system. Customers of Lietuvos Energija Group should also feel the benefit of the new system - due to the single and modern system, Group companies will be able to provide services to Group customers in a more qualitative and flexible way: create more flexible service plans, better serve customers in service centres and via self-service channels; system reliability and speed will increase.
Optimized branches of Lietuvos Dujos Having abolished their legal status, branches of Lietuvos Dujos started operating as Gas Network Departments of the company in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda, while regional divisions of Panevėžys and Šiauliai were merged into a single Northern Gas Network Department. Since now on, Heads of regional gas network departments are under direct subordination of the Director of Gas Network Service rather than CEO of the Company. Since 1 June, management of the activities of new customers was centralized in regional divisions, project implementation divisions were abolished and their functions were distributed to Engineering and New Customer Divisions, centralizing a part of gas metering functions, the function of economists and ICT administration. In order to achieve greater operating efficiency, territories served by regional departments were reviewed: Plungė and Telšiai were assigned to the Klaipėda region, Kėdainiai and Ukmergė - to the Northern region. On 1 June, the company’s financial accounting function was transferred to the Group company UAB Verslo Aptarnavimo Centras.
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