energy | In Principle

On 12 February 2021, Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Development, Labour and Technology, Jarosław Gowin, announced that the ministry has submitted to the government for inclusion in its agenda a proposal to amend the so-called 10H Distance Act. This means that in about two weeks, the public consultation process will begin, lasting another three weeks.

On 14 and 18 December, the president of Poland’s Energy Regulatory Office announced the results of this year’s last auctions for the sale of electricity from renewable energy sources (RES) for new onshore photovoltaic (PV) installations and wind power plants with a total installed capacity of up to 1 MW and over 1 MW, held on 26 November and 3 December 2020 respectively.

Both industry and households will see increased fees in their electricity bills. Meanwhile, the announced relief for energy-intensive industry is still lacking.

According to the International Energy Agency, over a fourth of oil and gas supplies today come from the seas. Over the past couple of decades, extraction of natural gas from offshore deposits has risen by over 50%. There is also growing emphasis on offshore wind energy. Ventures of this type are technically complex, often innovative, and consequently costly. That is why fuel companies insure platforms, borings, and drilling equipment. What is important to pay attention to in such insurance policies? How to prepare for a potential dispute?

The long-awaited bill on offshore wind farms was published on 15 January 2020. The bill is to establish mechanisms and instruments for supporting the generation of electricity by offshore wind farms, and, to a certain extent, conditions for the preparation and construction of such projects.

The Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology has submitted a long-awaited draft of the Act on Compensation for Energy-Intensive Industries in relation to the rising costs of climate policy.

A proposal for amendment of the Renewable Energy Sources Act has been published. It is intended to enable production of new RES while keeping energy prices as low as possible for users.

Increasing electricity prices may not please customers, but despite appearances they cause energy suppliers a lot of problems too. It is obvious that firms selling energy try to pass on increases in market prices to customers, even if they are bound by long-term energy sale agreements that guarantee a fixed price for the duration of the agreement. If this happens, customers need to seek the appropriate legal remedy to prevent costs going up, and in extreme cases prevent the electricity supply from being cut off.

The Ministry of Energy has published a draft amendment to the regulation on tariffs reducing the burden of the qualitative fee on some “large” industrial customers.

Changing energy prices observed in the last few months on the Polish Power Exchange (TGE) are causing disputes between energy suppliers and customers. Suppliers are raising prices unilaterally, the buyers respond by terminating their agreements, and the first cases are being heard in the courts. The large amount of uncertainty on the market is hindering the signing of agreements for the future. Even large and experienced businesses are finding this new situation daunting.

The issue of limits on construction of new on-shore wind turbines was examined by the CJEU. Have technical provisions been introduced without notification of the European Commission, and does this mean that Polish courts are required to refuse to apply them?

The National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR) is testing pre-commercial procurement on the energy market. More such projects will soon be launched in other sectors. What is PCP and who can benefit from it?