The Polish media reached the unofficial version of the ordinance of the Minister of Infrastructure on the assessment of applications submitted in the adjudication proceedings regarding, among others, the requirements that must be met by companies investing in offshore wind farms in Poland. The new regulations may exclude foreign and private concerns from investing in offshore wind energy in Poland. The Lewiatan Confederation, a business organization representing the interests of employers in Poland, referred to the matter.
According to the unofficial version of the regulation, which the entire industry is waiting for, private and foreign companies will not be able to invest in offshore wind farms in Poland, warns the Lewiatan Confederation. Employers in Poland appeal for re-consultation of the draft regulation and for working out a compromise.
– “The content of the regulation gives bonuses to coal-based state energy companies, for which it will be easier to obtain location permits, and thus support under auctions for offshore wind farms. Foreign and private concerns that do not have cooperation agreements with state-owned companies will be affected” – comments Dorota Zawadzka-Stępniak, director of the Energy and Climate Change Department of the Lewiatan Confederation.
In the new version of the regulation, not consulted with the social side and business representatives, there were requirements that may be difficult or impossible to meet by foreign investors who have knowledge and extensive experience in the implementation of projects of a similar scale and scope, preventing them de facto from participating in adjudication proceedings, thus excluding them from the process of investing in offshore wind energy in Poland.
Experience will not be rewarded.
The Ministry of Infrastructure gave up the idea to primarily reward experience in the implementation of complex projects in maritime areas. In addition to the criterion related to the construction of offshore wind farms, other criteria have been introduced regarding experience in the construction of onshore wind farms, short-term pilot projects in the field of hydrocarbon production or the implementation of energy storage.
– “In our opinion, these criteria will not allow the selection of companies whose competences guarantee the implementation of complex projects in maritime areas. They are associated with very specific risks, require specific knowledge and personnel, which cannot be gathered by implementing only the investments indicated in the draft regulation” – explains Dorota Zawadzka-Stępniak.
The proposed criteria should ensure that tenders with relevant experience can submit tenders. As we read in the position of the Lewiatan Confederation, I am calling for the draft regulation to be submitted for re-public consultation and for the development of a consensus so that at the stage of submitting applications the minister competent for maritime economy can choose optimal solutions from among many competitive offers – then the development of offshore wind energy will be beneficial for economy and society.
Source: Lewiatan
