In the first half of 2024, Poland increased its renewable energy output, securing third place in the growth of wind energy production — after Germany and Spain — with an additional 2.1 terawatt-hours compared to the same period in 2023.
The country also ranked fourth in solar energy production gains, following Germany, Spain and Italy, with an increase of 2.4 terawatt-hours year-over-year.
Further compounding the issue, the existing grid infrastructure is often unable to handle the intermittent nature of renewable energy, leading to potential reductions in power output from these sources.
"To fully utilize the potential of renewable energy sources, Poland must invest in both modernizing transmission networks and large-scale storage of surpluses," said Robert Szczotka, an expert with the Polish subsidiary of the Swedish–Swiss multinational ABB.
Without this, Poland's power grid operator PSE will be increasingly forced to cut power from RES installations, limiting the ability to deliver energy to areas with increased demand, Szczotka added.
Amid these challenges, debate concerning storage solutions is heating up, with technologies such as green hydrogen production, pumped hydroelectric power stations and battery storage solutions being explored.
ABB's Mariusz Wnuczek said that battery storage systems are particularly gaining traction, especially within the industrial sector.
Wnuczek added: "In the past two years, energy prices have started to rise dynamically, which has led to an increase in inquiries about this type of storage, especially from the industrial sector. Their use is an effective way to store excess energy produced from renewable sources, with the possibility of selling it on the market at the most profitable times."
Further, the shift from a traditional, passive (one-way) network to an active (two-way) network to accommodate what is known as "distributed generation" is altering the network's characteristics, according to experts.
"The increasing dynamics of distributed generation are changing the characteristics of the network from passive to active," Wnuczek emphasized. "Essential components of future energy infrastructure will therefore be energy storage systems, which will ensure system stability."
As Poland continues to expand its renewable energy capabilities, the construction of large-scale energy storage facilities, such as the one planned by the country's biggest power group PGE at the Żarnowiec Pumped-Storage Power Station — slated to be the largest in Europe — reflects a growing recognition of the need for robust infrastructure investment to support this green transition, state news agency PAP reported.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP
