EU Greenlights €194m Offshore Wind Farm Terminal in Poland
The European Commission has approved Poland's plans to allocate approximately €194 million (900 million zloty) of EU funds for the construction of an offshore wind farm terminal in Gdańsk.
The terminal will be situated at the Baltic Hub, Poland’s largest container port, and will support the installation and maintenance of wind turbines in the Baltic Sea. This initiative is part of Poland's strategy to generate up to 51% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2040.
These funds will be provided through the National Reconstruction Plan (KPO), which implements the EU’s post-pandemic Recovery and Resilience Facility (RFF).
The total investment for the project is estimated at 1.2 billion zloty (€253 million), with Istrana, the developer of the Baltic Hub, contributing the remaining 300 million zloty. European Commission approval was necessary for Poland to grant state aid to Istrana.
Construction is set to begin in the third quarter of this year, with the terminal expected to be operational by 2026. The Baltic Hub will be expanded by 21 hectares to accommodate the new facility.
Although Poland currently lacks offshore wind farms, they are poised to become a crucial component of its green energy transition. The official energy plan projects offshore wind capacity to reach 5.9 GW by 2030 and 11 GW by 2040. An updated draft from the previous government set a more ambitious goal of 18 GW by 2040, aiming for 51% renewable energy generation.
Currently, Poland relies on coal for around two-thirds of its electricity, the highest proportion in Europe. However, last year, the country achieved a record 26% of its power from renewables, up from 19.3% the previous year.
Construction of Poland’s first offshore wind farm, Baltic Power, is slated to begin this year. This project is a joint venture between Polish state energy giant Orlen and NP Baltic Wind, a subsidiary of Canada’s Northland Power. Located approximately 23 kilometers off Poland’s Baltic coast, the wind farm will feature 76 turbines, each 250 meters tall with a unit capacity of 15 MW. Orlen estimates that the project will supply around 3% of Poland’s electricity needs once completed.
Last year, the Baltic Power project secured €3.6 billion in loans from 25 Polish and international financial institutions, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), covering 80% of its costs.