
5 days · 3 summary articles
Poland breaks ground on 210 million gas plant in Kraków as coal phase-out accelerates
Polish energy firm secures loans for biomass plant in Gdynia to cut coal use by 60,000 tons annually
Polands PGE begins 200 million gas engine project to end coal use at Kraków plant by 2028
Poland’s state-owned PGE Energia Ciepła broke ground on a 866 million złoty ($210 million) gas-fired cogeneration plant in Kraków, part of a 2.9 billion złoty plan to eliminate coal at the city’s Electrociepłownia Kraków by 2028. The first phase will install 10 gas engines with combined capacity of 100 MWe and 100 MWt, built by Polish firms Unibep and SBB Energy, covering about 20% of Kraków’s district heating demand and cutting coal use by 200,000 tons annually.
Energy Minister Miłosz Motyka said the project aligns with Poland’s 2040 Heat Transformation Strategy, balancing supply security, cost control, and infrastructure modernization. PGE President Dariusz Lubera noted the plant currently supplies 70% of Kraków’s district heat and that the investment will employ up to 450 workers at peak construction.
Separately, Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe announced a key commercial agreement with the U.S. Bechtel-Westinghouse consortium on the engineering, procurement, and construction contract for Poland’s first nuclear plant in Choczewo, with both sides targeting full contract completion by year-end. Preparatory and geological work is underway at the site, and the company has applied for a construction permit from Poland’s Nuclear Agency. The updated national nuclear program confirms the first reactor is scheduled to begin commercial operation in 2036, with a second plant planned around 2040, and earmarks 60.2 billion złoty for capital increases between 2025 and 2030.
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