Poland leverages industrial legacy for wind economic bet
By Nathan Canas | Euractiv
Poland is targeting 5.9 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 17.9 GW by 2040. [Shutterstock/Voyagerix]
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Poland is leveraging its industrial heritage to reap the economic benefits of offshore wind, but the PiS-era political legacy is hampering efforts to develop the bigger prize of onshore wind.
Spurred by ambitious EU climate targets and the need to move away from Russian fossil fuels and diversify its energy pool, Poland is ramping up its renewable energy capacity.
Poland’s share of renewables in its electricity production has seen quite the uptake, increasing from 15% in 2019 to 27% in 2023, according to a report by NGO Bankwatch CEE.
Poland’s main focus is offshore wind in the Baltic Sea, not only because of the Baltic Sea’s energy potential of 33 GW, or about half of the country’s current installed power generation capacity, but also because of the associated economic and employment opportunities it brings to Poland’s heavily industrialised economy.
Speaking at a Euractiv-organised event on offshore wind in the Baltic Sea on 10 September, Maciej Gorski, COO of Polish state-owned utility Polska Grupa Energetyczna (PGE), spoke of the role of local companies, noting that they “are able to participate in the whole supply chain across the life cycle of those (offshore wind) projects.“
Sectoral agreement
Poland’s efforts to leverage the economic opportunities of offshore wind date back to 2021, when the government agreed to set up “a permanent platform for cooperation” on offshore wind that brings together the government, local authorities, investors, operators, supply and service chain representatives as well as research bodies to maximise the participation of Polish entrepreneurs in the country’s offshore wind farm supply chain.
The agreement includes explicit local content targets to stimulate local economic activity in the offshore wind sector.
The first offshore wind farms should have 20-30% of their value sourced from Polish companies, rising to at least 50% for projects deployed after 2030. The targets cover all aspects of wind farms, from pre-implementation to installation and operation.
The agreement aims to employ 30,000 Poles in the offshore wind sector by 2030 and generate €470 million in exports from the sector. By 2040 these figures should rise to 60,000 and €1.2 billion respectively.
Particular attention will be paid to Poland’s traditional shipbuilding industry as the agreement aims to reorient shipyards to build and repair vessels dedicated to offshore wind operations.
Offshore opportunities
Over the past year, several major offshore industrial investments have been announced in Poland, including by companies such as the Vestas factory, which will produce nacelles and blades for wind turbines, and factories such as Baltic Towers and Windar.
The only offshore wind farm currently under construction is Baltic Power, with a capacity of 1.2 GW.
More than 20% of the project’s lifecycle value is being sourced locally, including the construction of two offshore substations in the historic shipbuilding cities of Gdańsk and Gdynia, according to the developers.
The components for wind turbines’ steel foundations are being produced at four plants spread across Poland, and the power cables are being manufactured in the northern Polish city of Bydgoszcz.
According to the Polish Wind Energy Association, “the national metallurgical industry is able to supply most of the steel needed for towers and nacelles […] and can fully meet the demand for concrete, aluminium, copper and other essential raw materials.”
With its industry and resources, Poland aims to become a “true Baltic industrial hub for wind energy”, according to the same association.
In addition to Baltic Power, there are currently eight offshore wind projects with pre-construction permits in Poland, WindEurope confirmed to Euractiv.
Obstacles for onshore
Beyond Poland’s offshore potential, the country has even greater potential for the onshore market.
However, the mass deployment of on-land turbines is currently limited by planning restrictions that require turbines to be built at a minimum distance of 700 metres from buildings, compared to the lower EU standard of 500 metres.
While the centre-right government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk is seeking to relax these requirements in 2023, Poland is grappling with the legacy of a 2016 decision to dramatically restrict wind turbines under the far-right PiS government.
“If the government does not significantly improve the regulatory environment in which onshore wind energy operates, not only will the sector not reach 19 GW of (onshore) installed capacity by 2030, but it will also not even reach 16 GW,” warns the Polish Wind Energy Association.
In addition, Poland’s energy mix is still largely dominated by fossil fuels (72.9% in 2023), and its electricity distribution network will need major upgrades to accommodate the energy from wind farms.
As a result, Poland still needs investment and political will if it is to deliver on its green energy aspirations.
[Edited by Donagh Cagney/Daniel Eck]
By Nathan Canas | Euractiv
Poland is targeting 5.9 GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 17.9 GW by 2040. [Shutterstock/Voyagerix]
Euractiv is part of the Trust Project >>>
Poland is leveraging its industrial heritage to reap the economic benefits of offshore wind, but the PiS-era political legacy is hampering efforts to develop the bigger prize of onshore wind.
Spurred by ambitious EU climate targets and the need to move away from Russian fossil fuels and diversify its energy pool, Poland is ramping up its renewable energy capacity.
Poland’s share of renewables in its electricity production has seen quite the uptake, increasing from 15% in 2019 to 27% in 2023, according to a report by NGO Bankwatch CEE.
Poland’s main focus is offshore wind in the Baltic Sea, not only because of the Baltic Sea’s energy potential of 33 GW, or about half of the country’s current installed power generation capacity, but also because of the associated economic and employment opportunities it brings to Poland’s heavily industrialised economy.
Speaking at a Euractiv-organised event on offshore wind in the Baltic Sea on 10 September, Maciej Gorski, COO of Polish state-owned utility Polska Grupa Energetyczna (PGE), spoke of the role of local companies, noting that they “are able to participate in the whole supply chain across the life cycle of those (offshore wind) projects.“
Sectoral agreement
Poland’s efforts to leverage the economic opportunities of offshore wind date back to 2021, when the government agreed to set up “a permanent platform for cooperation” on offshore wind that brings together the government, local authorities, investors, operators, supply and service chain representatives as well as research bodies to maximise the participation of Polish entrepreneurs in the country’s offshore wind farm supply chain.
The agreement includes explicit local content targets to stimulate local economic activity in the offshore wind sector.
The first offshore wind farms should have 20-30% of their value sourced from Polish companies, rising to at least 50% for projects deployed after 2030. The targets cover all aspects of wind farms, from pre-implementation to installation and operation.
The agreement aims to employ 30,000 Poles in the offshore wind sector by 2030 and generate €470 million in exports from the sector. By 2040 these figures should rise to 60,000 and €1.2 billion respectively.
Particular attention will be paid to Poland’s traditional shipbuilding industry as the agreement aims to reorient shipyards to build and repair vessels dedicated to offshore wind operations.
Offshore opportunities
Over the past year, several major offshore industrial investments have been announced in Poland, including by companies such as the Vestas factory, which will produce nacelles and blades for wind turbines, and factories such as Baltic Towers and Windar.
The only offshore wind farm currently under construction is Baltic Power, with a capacity of 1.2 GW.
More than 20% of the project’s lifecycle value is being sourced locally, including the construction of two offshore substations in the historic shipbuilding cities of Gdańsk and Gdynia, according to the developers.
The components for wind turbines’ steel foundations are being produced at four plants spread across Poland, and the power cables are being manufactured in the northern Polish city of Bydgoszcz.
According to the Polish Wind Energy Association, “the national metallurgical industry is able to supply most of the steel needed for towers and nacelles […] and can fully meet the demand for concrete, aluminium, copper and other essential raw materials.”
With its industry and resources, Poland aims to become a “true Baltic industrial hub for wind energy”, according to the same association.
In addition to Baltic Power, there are currently eight offshore wind projects with pre-construction permits in Poland, WindEurope confirmed to Euractiv.
Obstacles for onshore
Beyond Poland’s offshore potential, the country has even greater potential for the onshore market.
However, the mass deployment of on-land turbines is currently limited by planning restrictions that require turbines to be built at a minimum distance of 700 metres from buildings, compared to the lower EU standard of 500 metres.
While the centre-right government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk is seeking to relax these requirements in 2023, Poland is grappling with the legacy of a 2016 decision to dramatically restrict wind turbines under the far-right PiS government.
“If the government does not significantly improve the regulatory environment in which onshore wind energy operates, not only will the sector not reach 19 GW of (onshore) installed capacity by 2030, but it will also not even reach 16 GW,” warns the Polish Wind Energy Association.
In addition, Poland’s energy mix is still largely dominated by fossil fuels (72.9% in 2023), and its electricity distribution network will need major upgrades to accommodate the energy from wind farms.
As a result, Poland still needs investment and political will if it is to deliver on its green energy aspirations.
[Edited by Donagh Cagney/Daniel Eck]
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