Households and industry will not enjoy affordable electricity unless Poland pours “huge investment” into offshore wind projects in and around the Baltic Sea, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.PAP/Andrzej Jackowski
Visiting Baltic Towers, a factory that manufactures steel towers for offshore wind turbines, Tusk described the site as “the largest and most modern of its kind in Europe”.
“Polish offshore is one of the country’s key energy prospects,” he told reporters on the factory floor.
“Put plainly, there will be no widely available, reasonably priced power for people and businesses without major projects on our Baltic coast and out at sea.”
If Poland wants to rank among global offshore-wind leaders, “the components must be made in Poland – here in Gdańsk,” he added.
Tusk began his day with a briefing at the Navy’s Maritime Component Command in nearby Gdynia, underscoring security concerns around critical energy infrastructure.
“We will work hard to protect our investments, including against sabotage coming from the east, which unfortunately is becoming more frequent in the Baltic,” he said.
Baltic Towers chief executive Jakub Wnuczyński said the plant answered a clear market need driven by Europe’s energy transition.
“This investment positions us as a major supplier of offshore turbine towers not only for the Baltic but also for the North Sea,” he said.
Poland’s updated energy strategy targets at least 11 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040, part of a broader plan to cut the share of coal in power generation and curb consumer prices.
(jh)
Source: PAP
