The size of Poland’s energy imports is determined by the fact that its electricity production is primarily based on own hard coal and lignite resources. These two fuels are of prime importance and will over the next several decades determine Poland’s energy security. This fact breeds specific problems and challenges, in particular in view of the ambitious tasks laid down in the EU Energy Package until 2020 and outright impossible to be enforced by the Polish electro-power engineering sector.
Summing up the economic results of Poland’s electro-power engineering in 2007, it follows that in the structure of electric energy production, hard coal accounted for more than 45% and for over 63% in that of fuels.



Electricity consumption in Poland has been growing while simultaneously saving measures have been taken to cap its use. Even so, per capita consumption is still much lower than the EU average. But according to long-term forecasts, Poland will use twice as much electric energy in 2030 than in 2005, with consumption to be highly diversified in various regions.

The above defines two essential challenges to be met: securing energy supplies along with diversification of production throughout the country and adjusting the transmission system to these conditions.
The year 2007 was esentially different in terms of the national electric energy balance. For the first time in many years consumption was higher while energy production dropped. The difference was made up by a significant increase in imports and a decrease in exports. .

Output in lignite–fired power plants in 2007 was 4.26% lower than in 2006, while production in power plants operating on hard coal dropped by 0.1%. Total output was 1.48% lower. That phenomenon was also observed early this year.
With the change of the still favourable balance of exchange with foreign countries, threats to the network system are looming and may materialize very soon in view of the growing short-term liabilities.
Most of the Polish network power plants were built in the 1960s and 1970s applying technologies available at the time. By now more than 70% of these have depreciated by more than 75%. This development accounts for the high running costs (and low electric energy gross production efficiency) in Polish plants and differing CO2. emission rates. It is estimated that with more than 35,000 MW installed in the network system (32,600 MW in thermal power plants and 1,400 MW in renewable energy-fired plants) at the end of 2008, about 5,000 MW of power generated by plants using non-renewable energy sources do not meet the competitiveness terms (because of high production costs) and ecological demands.
This situation calls for investments in the Polish electro-power engineering sector to reconstruct and up-grade existing power units and built new ones by up to 2020. The annual costs of such investments are estimated at PLN 6-8 billion. An additional one-third of that expense needs to be allocated for network development investments. Yet the outlays earmarked for these purposes so far have been much smaller.
Apart from the need to reconstruct old and built new power units, the most important challenge facing Polish electro-power engineering is meeting the guidelines of the EU Energy Package by 2020. Essential (because of being unfeasible) are among guidelines to curb CO2. emissions. Poland has fulfilled - and that in excess - its undertakings in Kyoto through economic reforms in the 1990s and investment efforts made in the framework of so-called “Long-term Contracts”. The CO2 emission reduction targets adopted for the years 2005-2007 and over the 2008 to 2012 period are, in my view too radical, while guidelines on purchasing 100% of carbon emissions credits in the years 2013 – 2020 are impossible to be met considering the fuel structure of Polish electro-power engineering and the country’s state of economic development. For it would be necessary to buy about 150 million Mg of emissions annually and that alone would raise the price of electric energy in Poland by about 70% (and in view of many even double the price).

Summing up – a very considerate approach has to be taken to the strategic guidelines on cutting down CO2.emissions. Both with respect to the logic of their effectiveness in reducing the greenhouse effect (though many people have doubts about that), as well as with regard to the costs for the economies taking up that challenge and its breakdown, taking into account the fuel structures of EU countries’ energy systems. In view of its different fuel structure, Poland’s electro-power engineering cannot be particularly hurt by implementing the package guidelines.

Source: Energy Market Agency (ARE S.A.) and the author’s library materials