Poland’s first offshore wind farm has moved into its final phase. Baltic Power, the project developed by ORLEN Group and Canada’s Northland Power, has now installed 50 of its planned 76 turbines, with the remainder due over the summer. All 78 foundations and transition pieces are already in place, both offshore substations and the onshore connection infrastructure are ready for start-up, and a service base is operating.
Once complete, Baltic Power will reach a capacity of around 1.2 GW and produce up to 4 TWh of electricity a year — roughly 3% of Poland’s current power demand, enough for more than 1.5 million households. The farm lies about 23 kilometres off the coast at the level of Choczewo and Leba.
The project is one of the first two in the world to use Vestas 15 MW turbines, currently the largest model the manufacturer produces in its European factories. Each turbine and foundation stands more than 250 metres tall, with 115.5-metre blades sweeping an area larger than six football pitches. According to Vestas, around 15% of the steel used is produced largely from recycled material in furnaces powered by renewable energy, which the company estimates can cut the turbine’s lifecycle carbon footprint by about 10%.
Work is now focused on the most demanding stage: integrating the offshore and onshore infrastructure with Poland’s national grid and carrying out trial transmission. “We are installing further turbines and carrying out advanced cabling work, alongside tests and commissioning that will allow full integration with the national power system,” said Maciej Stryjecki, President of Baltic Power.
For Poland, Baltic Power is the anchor project of a much larger offshore programme in the Baltic Sea, and its completion will strengthen the renewable share of the national energy mix while reinforcing security of supply.
