Piotr Naimski’s last ally in a management position in the strategic energy infrastructure sector was dismissed from his CEO post at the Polish Nuclear Power Plants (PEJ). What is he leaving behind? – asks Wojciech Jakóbik, editor-in-chief at BiznesAlert.pl.
Tomasz Stępień lost his post on 17 March, and his duties have been taken over by the VP Łukasz Młynarkiewicz. He was the last CEO associated with Piotr Naimski who used to be the Government Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure. Naimski was replaced by Mateusz Berger who has since moved Stępień from Gaz-System, and appointed Marcin Chludziński as CEO of the gas transmission operator. He also dismissed the president of PERN Igor Wasilewski (replaced by Paweł Stańczyk) and PSE CEO Eryk Kłossowski, who was replaced by the company VP Tomasz Sikorski.
Tomasz Stępień prepared PEJ to sign a project agreement with Westinghouse and – probably – with America’s Bechtel. The so-called Nuclear Special Act opened the way to adopting the initial decision, and now a relevant proposal is to be submitted. The Act makes it possible to prepare an investment before making a basic decision, which is a de facto political declaration of the government that the construction of an atom is in the interest of the country, following the choice of AP1000 technology from the USA by a government resolution from November 2022.
Stępień also held talks with the Americans about specific conditions for cooperation, some of which were finalized in the form of a bridge agreement. The project agreement is supposed to end all debates in 2023, and finalize the foreign and debt capital arrangements. Americans have declared their participation at up to 10 percent in PEJ shares. There is still no resolution on this matter. Until then, PEJ is to be financed from the Polish budget, and the latest financial injection of PLN 4 billion will allow it to operate until about 2026, when it must already start financing and building the first reactor. However, the first components have to be ordered now. Roads and railways leading to the construction site are already being prepared.
In the meantime, preparations are underway to announce the second location of a nuclear power plant being built under the Polish Nuclear Energy Program. Later this year, a list of proposed locations is to be presented, from which preferred ones will be selected, and then one, probably not in Pomerania, but in central Poland or Silesia. This is a challenge considering that it had been already announced that an NPP would be built in Pątnów in cooperation with Korea, and PKN Orlen is planning to build several SMRs. A large government-funded NPP means another location should be selected, but it should not be booked by projects that are called private.
Poland’s first NPP is being prepared, and Stępień’s successor will continue these efforts. Meanwhile, parliamentary elections are approaching, which may or may not, change the political landscape in Poland. Either way, the Polish nuclear project seems to have cross-party support of the largest political parties, as manifested by the crushing majority vote for the Nuclear Special Act, despite protests under the Sejm organized by environmentalists opposed to the atom. The Polish state needs the atom to ensure a secure supply of energy at an affordable price with minimal impact on the environment. Therefore, after the departure of the last CEO from Piotr Naimski’s team, all of this needs to be continued.