It’s the same old story in the Polish energy sector…
As always, it’s the same thing every month
The “wind turbine bill” is on its way through the legislative process
Another step forward is the establishment of the Sejm’s climate and environmental protection and infrastructure committees. The committees have adopted a draft bill (in a version reducing the minimum distance from buildings to 500 m). A few new amendments with a redistribution fund have been added, so there will be a heated discussion and new proposals. Optimists say it will be soon. Pessimists (i.e., realists) recall history (independent of governments). As a reminder, the problem began in May 2016 with the introduction of the 10H rule, which blocked new investments in onshore wind. The process of amending the law (mitigation) started in 2021 and, after many twists and turns, finally resulted in a new criterion (700m) in 2023. This was supposed to change with the next government. And so, after a false start (a new proposal immediately after the government took office at the end of 2023, “thrown” into the bill freezing energy prices), then subsequent versions and discussions, refinement of the proposal, suspension of activities due to one election or another, and finally, now, another acceleration (the distance is to be 500m). A proposal for several well-known bookmakers to start taking bets on whether the current government will pass anything from the “windmill” bill or whether this government will fall earlier and the whole game will start from the beginning.
“Energy price freeze” – multi-party consensus
Here, in turn, there is always nonsense from those in power, and regardless of the government, everyone freezes prices. The current government began immediately and systematically extended the price cap (500 PLN/MWh on bills – the energy component for individual customers). Regardless of stock market prices, the situation in global markets, and, above all, the outcome of the next elections, the price remains frozen. Currently, a “fresh” decision has been made – the freeze has been extended until the end of 2025. Here, too, we remain calm, regardless of what happens on the Polish political scene; we will always maintain a free energy market and impose a frozen tariff. People like it that way.
The Maria reactor is still not working…
The Polish nuclear research reactor remains offline due to a paper conflict between the PAA (State Atomic Energy Agency – the supervisory authority) and the NCBJ (National Centre for Nuclear Research – the operator). The dispute concerns safety zones – according to one side, 20 km, while the other claims it is at the facility’s fence. The latest rumours say that it will not be resolved in the next month and that it is not true that the reason is fear of Israeli and American planes bombing everything in sight if there is a nuclear facility in the photos. New ideas for solving the problem include moving the reactor to the Vistula Spit on Piaski Beach near the border (which would easily provide a 20 km protection zone). Still, employees are protesting that no one will be able to commute to work every day on the company bus from the centre of Warsaw, which takes four hours each way.
There are also issues related to mining, the ministries responsible for energy and its restructuring, the inclusion of renewable energy sources, and auctions favouring gas, as well as the fight against the ETS (numbers one and two). We can revisit this topic in a week.
Strange times? Or maybe we are unable to adapt quickly?
The last few years have been marked by rapid change, with new solutions emerging every day. Some people (including me) have problems understanding and are unable to transform themselves to the latest times.
For example, in the case of airlines, the possibility of flight delays due to ballistic missile attacks en route is a concern, with a maximum duration of up to two hours. During this time, passengers can enjoy new views from the window and receive reassuring messages from the pilot, who will explain that this is a standard procedure on routes in the Middle East.
For insurance companies – the new hit: insurance against missile or drone attacks linked to a terrorist attack policy
For the US border guard, the most important thing is to check social media posts and have no sense of humour. Probably because of SKET, I may not be able to enter the US anymore…
And entirely new ways of political negotiation, e.g.:
- You have until the 15th to decide, but we’re striking on the 13th
- I’ll decide within two weeks, but I decided today that we’re striking tomorrow.
- We don’t have reliable intelligence, but intelligence is wrong; I saw on TV that they have bombs.
- We struck and destroyed everything, but thanks to that, we are now moving towards peace.
- We struck and destroyed everything, but it is indeed unknown what was damaged, and it is certainly not true that anything remains.
- Peace in Ukraine in 24 hours, but so far, 100 days have passed
- Now, the truce will be eternal, but both sides start shooting again after 3 hours.
But surely… everyone will forget about it over the weekend, and there will be new strange things in the news.
PIAST-Q – Polish quantum computer and the problems of the Polish energy sector
A new generation of supercomputers has arrived – quantum computers. Their great advantage is that no one knows how they work – here is a sample description: A quantum computer is a computing device that utilises the principles of quantum mechanics, such as superposition and entanglement, to process information using qubits, which can be in multiple states simultaneously. This allows it to solve specific tasks much faster than classical computers. Poland also has a quantum computer, known as PIAST-Q, which operates at the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Centre (currently in the inauguration phase, with a full launch scheduled for the end of 2025). It is claimed that quantum computers will aid in the development of the country’s energy sector. Rumour has it that PIAST-Q was asked about the launch date of the first Polish nuclear power plant, and PIAST lit up, cried, and shut down. This is nothing new – great computing power does not solve metaphysical problems.
