Poland develops more ambitious coal phaseout plan

Warsaw, September 10 - Neftegaz.RU. Poland plans to phase out coal more quickly than its previously stated ambition, according to a new draft energy policy that looks ahead to 2040, Polish business daily Puls Biznesu reported.

The document, which was produced by the Ministry of Climate, states that the share of coal in the country's energy mix should fall to 35.6-56% in 10 years, which contrasts with the 56-60% provided for in a government report last November.

According to the draft plan, the share of coal in Polish energy consumption could fall to 11-28% by 2040, depending on whether the price of CO2 emissions permits will be cheaper or more expensive. A previous draft plan, published in November 2019 and just before the dismissal of Krzysztof Tchorzewski as energy minister, the share of coal was to be 28%.

Puls Biznesu said that Climate Minister Michal Kurtyka has given his assurance that the transformation of the Polish energy sector would be fair and that European funds of €13.49 billion would be mobilised to finance this target.

The new plan aims for a slightly greater share of renewable energy of at least 23% %, similar to the November plan’s target of 21-23%. The new draft still foresees the construction of NPPs and offshore wind farms.

According to the newspaper, Kurtyka has indicated that the forecasts for coal do not take into account the launch of extraction from the Złoczew lignite deposit, located in the area of the Bełchatów power plant that is operated by PGE. "We shall leave the decision regarding Złoczew to the investor," Kurtyka reportedly said.

The new plan also states that the government aims to commission the country’s 1st nuclear power unit in 2033 and that more reactors are to be commissioned every 2-3 years, up to 6 units in total. Offshore wind energy capacity is to increase to 5.9 GWe by 2030 and to 8-11 GWe by 2040.