Offshore investments in the Baltic Sea are speeding up and PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna is leading the way.
The development of renewable energy sources (RES) is crucial to Poland’s energy security – especially wind energy as a solution to the problems of energy poverty, high energy prices and dependence on imported raw materials. According to the Polish Energy Networks, more than 100 TWh per year of renewable energy can be produced by 2030, which would exceed 50% of domestic electricity demand.
The ongoing work on offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea allows the wind industry to look into the future with optimism. PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna is the leader of offshore wind energy development in Poland. It is also the largest offshore investor in the Baltic Sea, currently developing three projects with 3.4 GW total capacity.
PGE Group has scored the most points in five application procedures for new seabed areas in the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. In future, these five new areas could be developed with up to 3.9 GW on top of the 3.4 GW that is already under development. “PGE is already the leader of offshore wind energy in Poland, achieving a potential of over 7.3 GW of offshore capacity that can be developed in the coming years. This would exceed our strategic goal of 6.5 GW of capacity to be developed in the Baltic Sea set for 2040. We are consistently working on a comprehensive development of current and new offshore wind farm projects. Acquisition of new seabed areas will allow us to carry out this task. This will be reflected in the update of the PGE Group’s strategy”, said Wojciech Dąbrowski, President of the Management Board of PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna.
“Poland needs new generation capacity to limit the increase in electricity costs in the coming years and as a result to reduce electricity bills for consumers. That is why we are investing in renewable energy sources, including wind farms in the Baltic Sea. Energy from offshore wind farms will be cheaper, as its production does not involve paying fees for CO2 emissions. In this respect, decisions regarding
location permits for new offshore wind farms are extremely important to us, as they will allow us to achieve the strategic goals of the PGE Group and to strengthen Poland’s energy security,” Wojciech Dąbrowski added.
Investments speeding up In the first quarter of this year PGE recorded a net profit of PLN 1.7 billion (about 400 million euros). The final amount of capital expenditures of the PGE Group in the first quarter of this year was PLN 1.56 billion. The company stresses that it is the largest offshore investor in the Baltic Sea. Together with Ørsted it is currently implementing the Baltica Offshore Wind Farm project with a total capacity of approx. 2.5 GW, developed in two stages – Baltica 2 (about 1.5 GW) and Baltica 3 (about 1 GW). This is half of the power installed in the largest power plant in Europe, i.e. the Bełchatów Power Plant. Both stages of the Baltica OWF are planned to be commissioned by 2030. The energy from these farms will supply energy to nearly four million Polish households. Apart from Baltica OWF, another project named Baltica 1 of 0.9 GW is developed and planned to be commissioned after 2030.
In April PGE Group and Ørsted signed an agreement with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy to supply offshore wind turbines for the Baltica 2 project with a total capacity of about 1.5 GW. This is Poland’s largest-ever renewable energy project and will produce enough green energy to cover the power consumption of approximately 2.4 million Polish households. Ørsted and PGE expect to be able to commission Baltica 2 by the end of 2027. In addition to supplying 107 turbines with capacity of 14 MW each, Siemens Gamesa will be also responsible for service and supply of spare parts for a period of five years.
In June, the PGE Group and Ørsted signed an agreement with a consortium of SEMCO Maritime and PTSC Mechanical & Construction for four offshore substations for Baltica 2 – each of the stations will be equipped with two transformers. “The signing of the contract for offshore power stations for Baltica 2 is another key agreement within the project. The project is gaining momentum and has clearly entered the phase of finalizing further important contracts necessary for the development of the Baltica Offshore Wind Farm. Our goal is to build new, green generation capacities in the Baltic Sea with a planned total of 2.5 GW by 2030 which is of great importance for strengthening Poland’s energy
security,” Wojciech Dąbrowski said.
Europe’s energy security was also a topic of the recent meeting of Dąbrowski with the Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson, which took place took during the largest conference of the European energy sector – Power Summit 2023, organized by Eurelectric in cooperation with, among others, the Polish Electricity Committee.
Wojciech Dąbrowski referred to conventional units as support for the power system and the need to maintain the capacity market as a safeguard in the event of a lack of capacity in the system and to build nuclear power plants as an element of becoming independent from energy resources from Russia. He pointed out that the Polish power sector is currently focusing on the development of renewable energy sources, including offshore, energy storage, development of power grids and nuclear energy.
Dąbrowski also called for respecting the principle of technological neutrality: “Technologies contributing to the achievement of climate goals must be treated in the same way by EU regulations,” Wojciesh Dąbrowski said.
