Author: PPD Team Date: 26/03/2025
The government of Poland has approved draft legislation to relax restrictions on building onshore wind farms, moving towards fulfilling a 2023 election promise to accelerate renewable energy growth, Reuters reported.
The proposed changes, pending parliamentary approval, would reduce the required distance between wind installations and residential areas while maintaining stricter permitting rules near national parks and protected zones.
Poland’s Climate Minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska stated: “The Council of Ministers has just adopted, by circulation, the draft law on onshore wind farms.”
Under the previous government, onshore wind development was limited for eight years. However, renewable energy accounted for nearly 30% of Poland’s electricity generation in 2024. The Polish Wind Energy Association estimates that the relaxed permitting rules could facilitate the installation of 41 GW of onshore wind capacity by 2040, up from the current 11 GW.
Poland’s broader energy transition efforts
- Power grid expansion: Multi-utility company ORLEN secured a 1.7 billion zloty ($442.5 million) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to upgrade Poland’s electricity distribution network. This brings EIB’s total financing for Poland’s grid to 3.5 billion zlotys, according to Reuters.
- Nuclear development: The Polish government has approved up to 60.2 billion zlotys ($14.7 billion) in funding for its first nuclear power plant, subject to EU approval.