WARSAW — Poland is targeting a 56% share of renewable power in its electricity mix in 2030, the climate minister said on Thursday, as she presented the draft of the national energy and climate plan that Warsaw has to submit to the European Commission.
The target is below the pre-election pledge of the biggest party in the government that Poland would have up to 70% of green power in the mix by 2030, but above the 50% Poland declared in February.
“We are no longer arguing in the government about the basic parameters of the plan, the lack of transformation is more expensive than its implementation,” Paulina Hennig-Kloska told a news conference.
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The plan presented on Thursday envisages investment of 792 billion zlotys ($205 billion), she added.
National energy and climate plans detail member states contribution to the bloc’s target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and provide a road map driving investments by the energy industry.
Warsaw seeks to accelerate the deployment of renewables to reduce dependence on coal while it copes with legacy of the previous government, which had blocked the development of onshore wind and pledged to trade unions to keep mining coal until 2049.
Before being submitted to Brussels the plan needs the approval of the cabinet, in which the climate ministry is in charge of fostering energy transformation while the industry ministry oversees coal mines. While the plan cannot be blocked, it could be altered at that stage.
Warsaw-based think-tank Instrat said the strategy underestimated the potential of renewable power sources, while maintaining the use of coal for too long.
“Increasing the goals for renewable technologies could increase the share of renewable energy sources in 2035 and 2040 and reduce the demand for imported gas and partially domestic coal,” Instrat said.
The plan envisages a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 50.4% by the end of the decade and a 16.7% reduction in primary energy consumption compared to 2020.
($1 = 3.8496 zlotys)
(Reporting by Marek Strzelecki; Editing by Alison Williams)
