Poland Opens Public Consultation on Draft Offshore Wind Bill

Poland has started a public consultation process on a draft bill to support the development of offshore wind energy in the Polish Baltic Sea.

The 30-day public consultation period started on 15 January.

The draft bill, ”Ustawy o promowaniu wytwarzania energii elektrycznej w morskich farmach wiatrowych (UD34)”, translated loosely as ”The act to promote electricity generation at offshore wind farms”, specifies the terms and conditions for the preparation and implementation of investments in offshore wind projects, and mechanisms and instruments supporting the production of electricity at offshore wind farms.

According to the draft bill, up to 4.6GW of offshore wind capacity will be offered via contracts by 2022. The advantage will be given to the most advanced projects.

The draft bill also proposes that offshore wind auctions are held in 2023 (500MW), 2025 (2.5GW), 2027 (2.5GW), and in 2028 if the capacity cap in the 2027 auction is not met. The electricity generated at the selected projects will be subsidized for a period of 25 years.

At the end of 2018, Poland revealed plans to develop 8GW of offshore wind energy in the Baltic Sea by 2035.