Polish Briefing: Poland to shell out PLN 100 m to combat energy crisis I Warsaw loses EU battle over capacity market

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Offshore wind farms and the European Union. Graphics: Gabriela Cydejko
Offshore wind farms and the European Union. Graphics: Gabriela Cydejko

What goes in Poland on 15th of September.

Poland will spend PLN 100 billion to fight the energy crisis and is preparing a special act for next year

The Ministry of Climate and Environment estimates that the spending on the interventions in the energy, gas and heating prices in Poland will reach a total of about PLN 100 billion. It is also preparing a special act for next year, but this decision has yet to be made.

„In the end we will find out the totals once we will collect funds from companies and all settlements will be done. We assume that they will be lower than planned, especially given the last quarter,” said the Minister of Climate and Environment Anna Moskwa about the cost of the state intervention during the energy crisis. She spoke to journalists at the conference Energy Security After 2023 with the participation of the European Commission and the International Energy Agency.

„We estimate that the cost of the interventions in energy, gas and heat prices total at about PLN 100 billion, including 30 billion from state-owned companies (compensation mechanism-ed. ), assuming that nothing extraordinary will happen with the prices,” Moskwa commented.

„We have ready-made bills in different variants, this time one big bill for energy, gas and heat. We are waiting for reports on prices,” the Minister explained. She recalled that soon energy companies will learn about the contractual coal prices. „This last quarter and the last meeting of the Sejm is the time to adopt the possible support instruments for next year,” the Minister added, recalling that the support package was included in the list of legislative works of the spring 2023 Sejm sitting. „We have different mechanisms to choose from,” said Anna Moskwa. „We will discuss them with other ministries,” she added.

Wojciech Jakóbik

Capacity market: hope for Polish coal dies in Brussels, but not all is lost

The European Parliament adopted the opinion of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) on the reform of the capacity market, which excludes the conditional extension of the capacity market supporting coal-fired power, for which Poland hoped. The talks will continue as part of the Trialogue.

Members of the European Parliament adopted ITRE’s position without amendments. It did not include an amendment that would conditionally extend the capacity market after 2025. This mechanism was created to support coal-fired power generation, without which it is unprofitable.

The negotiating position of the European Parliament excludes the extension of the capacity market on which Poland depends due to the fact that it generates 70 percent of its power at coal-fired plants and was too slow in building other types of power plants. For this reason, prof. Jerzy Buzek and other members of the European Parliament advocated a conditional extension of the capacity market after 2025. In the 2020s, it will still need a coal reserve. Further discussions on the capacity market will take place in negotiations between the EU institutions: the Parliament, the Commission and the Council of the European Union.

Wojciech Jakóbik