For some time now we have been rounding up news from the partner countries that matter most to Latvia, paying particular attention to the Nordic countries, Germany and Poland. This time it is Poland's turn, not least because Poland is the most significant economic and military power in the eastern part of the European Union and a close ally of ours in the field of security. Poland is developing very rapidly, in nuclear energy for example. The country's economic development and the general prosperity of its people are plain to anyone who has visited. We also devote attention to Poland because it pursues its own quite independent and confident policy, from which Latvia could learn a thing or two. Of course, as everywhere, Poland too grapples with problems, seeking and finding successful solutions…

Military and energy security are Poland's main priorities, and in January 2025 it is preparing to take over the European presidency under the so-called rotation principle. Poland plans to achieve specific goals, seeking to promote the development of nuclear energy, maintain sanctions against Russia and support EU accession negotiations with Ukraine. Domestically, too, the Polish government is tackling energy problems by extending the freeze on electricity prices for households and modernising the electricity grid. Energy transition strategies and the related changes in legislation promise some interesting solutions.

Events expected in the coming weeks

• Presidency of the Council of the EU. On 1 January 2025 Poland will take over the presidency of the Council of the EU. “Our main message is security in seven key areas: military, energy, food, economic, health, information and civil,” Deputy Minister for European Affairs Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka told the newspaper Rzeczpospolita. Poland's priorities are securing funding to strengthen the country's eastern border and imposing a further package of sanctions on Russia. Poland also wants to open European Union enlargement negotiations with Ukraine. On energy, Poland is seeking to have nuclear power classified as an environmentally friendly energy source, the newspaper reports.
  
  
• Electricity prices. The Polish government has approved a bill extending the freeze on electricity prices for households into 2025, prolonging the price cap of 500 zloty (114.92 euro) per megawatt hour (MWh). The freeze was initially intended to cover businesses as well. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that it is necessary to keep the economy competitive, given that the incoming US President Donald Trump could push energy prices up by pursuing policies favourable to fossil fuels. Nevertheless, the bill approved by the government will end the price freeze for businesses, local authorities and hospitals. For Poland, which is subject to the EU excessive deficit procedure, the freeze will cost 5.5 billion zloty (1.3 billion euro). Critics argue that the policy fails to address structural problems in the energy sector and discourages investment in more efficient energy systems. The bill has already been approved by the lower house of the Polish parliament and will be submitted to the Senate for approval; to become law, it will be signed by President Andrzej Duda.
  
  
• Wind energy. Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Polish People's Party (PSL), a member of the ruling coalition, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced that his party would table a proposal to reduce the minimum distance between new wind turbines and residential buildings from 700 to 500 metres in order to make projects easier to carry out. The Ministry of Climate is working on a similar solution and wants the government to adopt it by the end of the year. The ruling coalition has already tried once to relax the rules, but after a bitter dispute it abandoned the plan.

Summary of the past month

• Nuclear energy funding – plans are beginning to take shape for financing the construction of Poland's first nuclear power plant on the Baltic Sea coast. From 2025 to 2030, 30% of the projected costs – 60.2 billion zloty (13.9 billion euro) – will be covered from the state treasury, with the remainder covered by foreign loans. Initial interest in providing support has been shown by the Export-Import Bank of the United States (70 million zloty/16.2 million euro) and the US International Development Finance Corporation (4 billion zloty/950 million euro). Westinghouse, the US company Poland has chosen as its international partner on the project, has placed its first orders with Polish suppliers.
  
  
• Poland and Japan have signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the development of nuclear energy, focusing on skills development, technology exchange and public education about nuclear safety. The agreement does not provide for Japan's direct involvement in building the nuclear power plant.
  
  
• Poland's state energy giant Orlen has received an 800 million euro loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to modernise its electricity distribution networks, with a focus on expanding renewable energy connections and integrating smart grid technologies in the north and centre of the country. The funds, to be disbursed over three years, are intended to address problems such as grid congestion caused by the rapid growth of renewable energy micro-installations, which in 2023 exceeded 11.3 GW. These improvements will enhance security of energy supply and support distributed generation, the company says.
  
  
• Batteries – the Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt has announced the closure of its energy storage development and manufacturing business in Poland and Sweden following its recent bankruptcy filing in the United States. This will mean job losses at plants in Poland and Sweden, although Northvolt plans to keep its business scaling centre in Gdańsk. In recent years Poland has become a European hub for lithium-ion battery manufacturing. However, the fast-growing sector is facing difficulties linked to falling demand for electric vehicles in Europe, fierce competition from Asia and EU regulation, which may make batteries produced in Poland less attractive to environmentally minded consumers and shareholders, because the country's electricity mix has a high share of emissions.
  
  
• “Dunkelflaute”. In early November Poland experienced a so-called dunkelflaute – a period with little or no wind and sunshine. Electricity generation from renewable sources fell to its lowest level this year, while electricity prices and emissions rose sharply. On 6 November, for the second time, Poland's grid operator PSE called on all units with an obligation to supply electricity to increase output in order to avoid supply interruptions.