A draft act (No. UD332) amending the Renewable Energy Sources Act and certain other acts (“Draft”) was added to the legislative and policy work agenda of the Council of Minister. Published assumptions of the Draft contain changes that were eagerly anticipated by Poland’s biogas sector, as they provide for an auction-based support system for facilities producing biomethane with an installed electrical capacity exceeding 1 MW as well as measures to facilitate the construction of direct pipelines for biogas.
Key takeaways
According to the published assumptions, the Draft will contain following key changes concerning the agricultural biogas and biomethane:
- Introduction of an auction-based support system for biomethane facilities with an installed electrical capacity of more than 1 MW, where the support system will be supervised by the President of the Energy Regulatory Office (“URE President”).
- Introduction of a definition of and establishing rules for the operation of direct pipelines for biogas, agricultural biogas or biomethane.
- Clarification of the rules governing settlements between biomethane producers and renewable energy operators and also gas grid operators.
- Enabling the location of all agricultural biogas plants with an installed electrical capacity of more than 1 MW on the basis of a resolution of the municipal council.
Background
In 2024, the register of agricultural biogas producers only included 163 agricultural biogas plants (operated by 137 entities) with a total installed electrical capacity of about 155 MW and producing approximately 634 mcm of biogas annually.
Potential of 8 bcm of biomethane produced annually corresponds to 46% of the country’s natural gas demand. Ensuring adequate infrastructure and developing biomethane could, in the longer term, lead to output of up to 13 billion m³ by 2050, positioning Poland as the fifth-largest producer in the EU. The National Energy and Climate Plan (“KPEiK”) assumes that biomethane production will reach 1.1 billion m³ by 2030 and 2.6 billion m³ by 2040.
Conclusions
Poland has enormous potential for biogas and biomethane production, which could become a key element in the energy transition process and the circular economy.
Investing in this renewable energy segment could significantly reduce gas imports and accelerate the transition away from the use of coal in district heating and power generation. Additionally, such investment would help to bring down CO₂ emissions by 12.5 million tons annually and to produce up to 60 million tons of digestate, reducing the demand for artificial fertilizers by 25%. This perfectly aligns with the EU’s climate policy and the role played by agriculture in reducing greenhouse gas emissions under EU plans.
Although the biogas sector is currently at an early stage of its development, the proposed legal changes may contribute to its growth. Investing in biogas will increase the country’s energy independence and strengthen Poland’s position in the European energy transition process.
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