The Polish Senate has passed the nation's eagerly-awaited offshore wind act, completing a lengthy legislative process that paves the way for 5.9GW of wind at sea to be built by 2030 and almost 11GW by 2040.

"The regulations contained in the Offshore Wind Act, laying a foundation for development of wind farms in the Polish part of the Baltic Sea, will support Poland’s transition towards a low-carbon economy over the coming decades," said Kamila Tarnacka, vice-president of the Polish Wind Energy Association (PWEA).

"Launching investment projects worth approximately 130bn Polish zloty ($34.9bn) will help to mitigate the negative consequences of the [economic] slowdown caused by the pandemic."

Under the legislation, a first batch of some 5.9GW in pre-developed projects will be entitled to contracts for difference (CfD) support granted by the country’s energy regulator, with first turbines expected to start producing power as early as in 2025. Entry into that system ends on June 30, 2021, PWEA said.

After that, Poland will use competitive auctions for another 5GW of future offshore wind capacity.

PWEA stressed that to make sure the first offshore wind power will actually be fed into the Polish grid by the middle of this decade, a series of further regulatory steps are needed.

They include regulations on maximum price for offshore energy, technical requirements, maritime safety, impact on military systems and grid-link ownership arrangements.

The energy potential of the Baltic Sea is enormous.

PWEA also expects the adoption by the end of March of a maritime spatial development plan for the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. The group once more stressed that the country’s offshore wind ambitions could be even greater.

“The energy potential of the Baltic Sea is enormous and the conditions in the Polish part of the sea are among the best for this type of investment,” Tarnacka said.

“We should take advantage of this. Ultimately, we can connect up to 28GW of capacity in offshore wind farms to the Polish system and thus become the region's leader.

Wind

Poland set for $35bn offshore wind boom as parliament passes long-awaited act