EBRD lends PLN117mn for construction of two Polish wind farms

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has provided a loan of PLN117mn (€26mn) to a joint-venture of Finland’s investment fund Taaleri Energia and Masdar from the United Arab Emirates, the EBRD said on January 18. The loan is covering construction of two wind farms, one with an installed capacity of 37.4 MW in Mlawa, approximately 110 km northwest of Warsaw, and the other in the northeastern town of Grajewo, with an installed capacity of 14 MW. 

Both wind farms will benefit from the Polish renewable energy support scheme for a portion of their respective outputs following their successful bids in the December 2019 auction, the EBRD said.

Despite rising investment in wind and solar energy, Poland remains reliant for over 70% of its energy production on burning hard coal and lignite. The Polish power sector is, in effect, one of the most CO2-intensive in Europe and out of line with the EU’s climate goals of reducing climate-warming CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030, versus 1990 levels. Warsaw plans to continue support for onshore wind as well as solar installations but the core part of Poland’s transition to a low-carbon economy will be the construction of 8GW-11GW of offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea and six to nine nuclear power reactors – all by the 2040s.

The two new wind power plants will help reduce annual CO2 emissions by approximately 126,000 tonnes annually, the EBRD said. The loan will be complemented by a parallel loan from Norwegian bank DNB, the EBRD added.