Highlights: 

• Offshore wind energy is the key element of Poland's national energy strategy.  
• New regulations are aimed at facilitating the construction of offshore wind farms on the Baltic Sea and support other renewable energy sources  
• The Lower Oder Valley National Park will be the first national park in Poland since more than 24 years.  
• The establishment of the park will allow for comprehensive protection of natural assets and the development of sustainable tourism in the Międzyodrze area.  

Acts of law adopted by the Council of Ministers:

• Draft Act amending the Act on the promotion of electricity generation in offshore wind farms and certain other acts (UD162),  
• Draft Act on the establishment of the Lower Oder Valley National Park (UA12).  

Offshore wind energy development 

Offshore wind energy is one of the pillars of the Polish energy transition. Due to the stable conditions in the Baltic Sea - such as strong winds, shallow depths and low salinity - Poland has unique opportunities to develop this sector. The plan is to reach an installed capacity of 5.9 GW by 2030 and 18 GW by 2040. This volume is included in the draft National Energy and Climate Plan up till 2030.  
 

The Act on promoting electricity generation in offshore wind farms is a boost for the competitiveness of the Polish economy and job creation in a completely new sector. It is another step towards strengthening Poland's energy security. Offshore wind energy is the key element of Poland's national energy strategy and we must develop it 

- said Paulina Hennig-Kloska, Minister of Climate and Environment.  

The introduction of the Act will enable the improvement of offshore wind energy projects and the effective conducting of the first auction for offshore wind farms and other renewable energy sources. The Act clarifies the regulations and fills legal gaps to ensure that the auction is successful. The aim is to ensure that both the auction organiser and the investors participating in the auction have no doubts regarding the interpretation of the regulations.  

The Act will enable, among other things:  

• activities of energy cooperatives in urban municipalities,  
• support of the resident prosumer development,  
• facilitating the conclusion of contracts for the purchase of energy by LGUs within the energy cluster,  
• meeting sustainability and greenhouse gas emission reduction criteria for biomass fuels.  

The Act is aimed at development of renewable energy in Poland, in compliance with the plan to decarbonise the economy and meet international obligations. Among others, it introduces the legal basis for the publication of digital maps of RES potential, which will answer the question on where and what is worth investing. Until now, such maps have not been available in Poland. They will allow for creation of RES Accelerated Development Areas within the scheme of agreement with local communities. The milestones of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRP) are also implemented in this way. 

The most advanced offshore wind project in Poland is the Baltic Power project (with the capacity of almost 1,200 MW). It is expected that the project will be fully operational in the second half of 2026. The consecutive project is the Baltica 2 offshore wind farm project (with the capacity of almost 1,500 MW). The scheduled start-up date is scheduled in the second half of 2027.  
 
Lower Oder Valley National Park 

The Lower Oder Valley National Park will be the first national park in Poland to be located within the boundaries of a voivodeship city - the City of Szczecin. It will cover the area of 3856 ha. It is a habitat for more than 230 bird species. It will be the 7th cross-border national park.  
This will be Poland's first new national park since 24 years. A new highlight to attract tourism and investment to the region, while protecting this beautiful area more effectively. The area of the park is a unique ecosystem not only on a national scale but also in Europe  

- said Paulina Hennig-Kloska, Minister of Climate and Environment.  

The establishment of new forms of nature conservation is one of the priority tasks of the Ministry of Climate and Environment. The establishment of the park will allow for comprehensive protection of the natural values of the Międzyodrze area, in particular by carrying out active protection measures aimed at preserving or restoring natural habitats and species of plants, animals or fungi as well as their habitats in the ecosystems. The establishment of the park will also provide the economic development boost for the Miedzyodrze area, particularly for tourism in the region. It will allow for creation of additional jobs, while the park itself will be made available, among others, for recreational and educational purposes.  
The boundaries of the park and its buffer zone have been designated in such a way as to ensure the best protection of the area's natural resources, while also allowing existing users of the area, in particular sailors, fishermen and anglers, to continue their activities. To this end, a letter of intent was signed with representatives of the Fishermen Cooperative "Regalica", the Polish Angling Association, District in Szczecin. This is the key agreement securing the interests of fishermen and anglers in the planned Lower Oder Valley National Park.  

Międzyodrze is a unique area in terms of nature, landscape and history. It is now included within the boundaries of the landscape park and protected by the European Natura 2000 network. Two nature reserves are located within its boundaries. The idea to establish the Lower Odra Valley National Park in this region emerged due to the residents of the region who approached the Ministry of Climate and Environment with a request to take measures aimed at establishing a national park.  

Navigation in the vicinity of the Lower Odra Valley National Park will be possible, as is the case today. The boundaries of the planned park and its buffer zone do not comprise the main branches of the Oder – the Western Oder and Regalica, where ships will still be able to navigate according to the existing rules. The establishment of the park will neither disrupt navigation nor inhibit the existing shipping route. 
More information about the Lower Oder Valley National Park can be found here.