It’s obvious that electricity produced at sea must be delivered to land. This is no different in the case of offshore wind farms being built in Polish Baltic waters, hence each of these projects includes an appropriate concept for delivering the energy generated by the turbines to consumers on land. At this point, however, there is a significant barrier: the poor state of the power grid, causing significant difficulties in the development of RES, and therefore offshore wind power. Will this change?
The national power grid needs to be overhauled and expanded
The key changes in Poland’s energy system will take place in the north of the country. This is where offshore wind farms and a nuclear power plant will be built. These are the main challenges for the expansion and modernization of the existing power grid. At the same time, it should not be forgotten that the dynamic development of green energy sources throughout the country and the failure of the power grid to keep up with this development makes it necessary to disconnect RES installations, which in practice means a significant waste of green energy potential. And it is for all these reasons that changes to the power grid are necessary. Without them, the shift away from fossil fuels will simply fail.
What will change?
The most important grid operator – that is, the company Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne – together with ENERGA OPERATOR have completed work on a concept for the development of power grids until 2033. In fact, the only remedy for the emerging problems remains a significant modernization and expansion of the grid, taking into account the growing needs – especially in the field of renewable energy. Decision makers seem to be well aware of these conditions.
However, while the desired direction of the work is clear, the problem remains finding the funds to carry out the necessary work. Their value is estimated at as much as 500 billion zlotys. Certainly, EU funds will play a major role, including, above all, those provided under the National Reconstruction Plan. However, it seems that stopping at this is not enough. There is a need to look for new solutions, especially in terms of private capital involvement.