New onshore wind farms in the Greater Poland Voivodeship
ORLEN Wind 3, owned by the ORLEN Group, has signed an agreement to acquire wind farms from UK-based Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust PLC. The transaction encompasses assets situated in the Provinces of Poznań and Szczecin, with a total capacity of approximately 60 MW, sufficient to supply electricity to more than 100,000 households. The ORLEN Group currently boasts close to 1 GW of installed capacity in renewable energy sources.
“Committed to leading the energy transition in Central Europe, the ORLEN Group is progressively achieving ambitious goals to provide Poles with access to affordable, safe, and clean energy. Onshore wind farms are integral to attaining this objective. The recent finalisation of the agreement to purchase state-of-the-art wind farms represents both a major acquisition for the ORLEN Group and a milestone in developing our renewable energy capacities. This transaction is poised to boost our energy production by around 60 MW, effectively contributing to Poland’s energy transition", says Daniel Obajtek, CEO and President of the Management Board of ORLEN.
The agreement provides for the acquisition of two onshore wind farms, inaugurated in 2022. The first one, located in Kuślin near Nowy Tomyśl in the Province of Poznań, comprises 12 Vestas turbines, each 3.3 MW, with a total output of about 40 MW. The second farm in Krzęcin, near Choszczno in the Province of Szczecin, consists of 8 Nordex turbines, each 2.4 MW, with a total installed capacity exceeding 19 MW.
Besides Kuślin, the Company operates other wind farms in the Province of Poznań, including those in or near Dobrzyca (49.9 MW), Ujazd (30 MW), Dominowo (62.4 MW), and Przykona (approximately 33 MW). More renewable projects are underway, to be implemented by the ORLEN Group’s Energa Wytwarzanie. In July 2023, the subsidiary signed a preliminary agreement with Greenvolt for the Opalenica and Sompolno projects. Opalenica will comprise three PV farms totalling 22 MW, while Sompolno is a hybrid venture, combining 26 MW in wind capacity with a 10MW PV farm. Energa also plans to expand its portfolio to include two more solar farms: PV Mitra (65 MW) and PV Żuki (2.4 MW).
ORLEN is also investing in the construction of the first offshore wind farm in the Polish Baltic Sea. In October 2023, the company made a final investment decision on the Baltic Power farm, which will have a capacity of up to 1.2 GW. This is the largest renewable energy project in Central and Eastern Europe. Slated for completion in 2026, the farm will generate enough electricity to power over 1.5 million Polish households.
Simultaneously, ORLEN Group companies secured five additional licenses for constructing offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea, boasting a combined capacity of roughly 5.2 GW. Including the Baltic Pipe project, the Company now holds six offshore wind farm sites, with a total potential output of 6.4 GW.
In line with its strategy, by 2030 the ORLEN Group aims to own renewable energy assets totalling more than 9 GW in capacity. This includes offshore and onshore wind farms, solar farms, and biogas and biomethane generation units. Overall, by the end of this decade, the ORLEN Group plans to allocate as much as PLN 120 billion to green investment projects.