Solar and Wind Energy – learnings from site visits in Poland

With the current energy crisis, interest in green energy and investments in renewable energy solutions have been rising. The RESINDUSTRY – Policies for Renewable Energy Sources in industry – project aims to increase the renewable energy sources use especially in the industry. For that, an Expert Mission between Polish and Finnish experts was organized in April 2022 and hosted by the Marshal Office of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. Sandor Luukkanen from Lahti Energia and Katerina Medkova from LAB University of Applied Sciences represented the experts from Finland. Link to RESINDUSTRY website

A photo of a group of people outside on a sunny day. In the background, there are three windmills. There are white clouds in the sky. — Picture 1. The participants of the Expert Mission visited the 10 MW Szerzawy wind farm. (Picture: Piotr Żołądek)

Visiting Wind Farm

A study visit to the wind farm in Szerzawy, Poland was organized. The representative of Elawan Energy, Michał Górski, presented the details of the installation operating since 2015. The project’s total costs were nearly 21 million €, co-funded by the National Fund for Environment and Water, with an expected payback time of 15 years. The minimum forecasted use of the farm is 25 years. The 10 MW wind farm consists of five Vestas V100 wind turbines, each with a capacity of 2 MW. It is estimated to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 19 825 tonnes of CO2 annually.

Exploring Renewable Energy Technologies

The participants of the Expert Mission also visited EkoEnergia Polska and their research facility located in the Kielce Technology Park. EkoEnergia acts as one of the RESINDUSTRY stakeholders in Poland. The company explores maximum efficiency in various operating conditions of renewable energy sources.

Picture 2. The Expert Mission continued in EkoEnergia Polska and its research centre focusing on renewable energy sources and various factors impacting their efficiency. The facility also serves as an educational centre for presenting existing and novel renewable energy technologies available in Poland. (Picture: Piotr Żołądek)

Since May 2020, the Research and Development Centre has set up 49 research stations under the supervision of scientists and in cooperation with universities, investigating photovoltaic (PV) modules, heat pumps, and solar collectors (EkoEnergia Polska 2020). For instance, the impact of PV installations depending on their azimuth, angle, type (e.g., monocrystalline, polycrystalline, double-sided), and technology of installed photovoltaic modules is being researched. Based on the analysis, the most suitable and cost-effective solution for a specific operating environment is found.

A photo outdoor during a sunny day. In the front, there are PV panels floating on the water. Behind them, there is a group of people listening to one speaker. In the background, different PV installations are visible. — Picture 3. The PV Garden in the outdoor premises of EkoEnergia, where people can see and learn about the different PV installations, on frames, on roofs, and floating on a water line. Also, double-sided PV panels combined with white gravel under the panel to reflect the sunlight are being studied here. (Picture: Piotr Żołądek)

Apart from photovoltaics, also heat pumps, such as air-to-air, water source, and geothermal are explored. For instance, in the case of ground heat pumps, the research centre compares the impact of the location, such as vertical (boreholes), horizontal (trenches) or pool type installations. The total investment of the research facility is approximately PLN 11 million through the Regional Operational Programme for the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship 2014 – 2020 of over PLN 6 million (EkoEnergia Polska 2020).

According to the authors, Poland has got enormous potential for utilizing wind energy, heat pumps and PV panels, which are nowadays rapidly growing branches in the energy sector. The hybrid solutions could really be one of the interesting solutions for Poland’s challenge to achieve targets for CO2 emission reduction. Wind turbines, heat pumps and PV panels are competitive already and getting mainstream. The climate in Poland differs from Finland with longer summertime and shorter heating season, which is an asset for Poland while using the new technologies. Companies like EkoEnergia Polska are the key players in Poland and the real path showers in the energy transition, in which we all are in the focus point in Europe, wanted or not. Change is dynamic and constant, and the regulations should follow fast enough.

Authors

Sandor Luukkanen, who works as Project Director at Lahti Energia, is one of the RESINDUSTRY regional stakeholders.

Katerina Medkova works as an RDI specialist at LAB University of Applied Sciences and is a Project & Communication Manager in the RESINDUSTRY project. RESINDUSTRY is supported by the Interreg Europe Programme funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and co-financed by the participants.