In its new draft development plan for 2025-2034, PSE plans to add more than 4,800 kilometers of 400kV lines to upgrade the Polish power grid and connect 45GW of solar photovoltaic capacity to the grid by 2034. Among them, large-scale ground photovoltaic projects will contribute about 20GW, and rooftop photovoltaic projects will contribute 25GW.

The expected capacity of solar PV will reach 45GW by 2034, with the TSO setting significantly higher targets for the technology than in the National Energy Climate Plan (NECP) submitted by the Polish government earlier this month.

In the latest national energy and climate plan, Poland aims to have an installed photovoltaic capacity of 29.3GW by 2030, 22GW more than the last national energy and climate plan submitted in 2019.

According to the Polish Renewable Energy Institute, Poland's total installed photovoltaic capacity will increase from less than 100MW in 2015 to more than 17GW by the end of 2023 (18GW since the third quarter of 2023). Growth comes mainly from rooftop PV.

Since 2016, the Polish government has held multiple tenders including solar photovoltaic power. From 2016 to 2023, a total of more than 7.3GW of photovoltaic power capacity was obtained, which is 2GW more than onshore wind power. Nearly half (3GW) of all PV capacity tendered during this period was contracted in 2021.

In addition, TSO has approved more than 4.6GW of photovoltaic capacity by the end of 2023. The projects are required to be connected to the grid within two years of application approval.

"The implementation of the projects proposed in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper is a fundamental element of Poland's energy transition, which will ultimately enable our country to achieve its 2050 climate neutrality goal." PSE Chairman Grzegorz Onichimowski said: "The planned investments are a reflection of the dynamic changes The response will help the grid prepare for these changes."

One of the hot topics discussed in Poland at last year's Central and Eastern Europe Large Solar Conference in Warsaw was cable sharing and the opportunities this would bring for solar PV. Cable sharing refers to the sharing of grid capacity between two independent power projects (referring to renewable energy power projects in this case) at a specific grid connection point.

According to the market outlook report of trade association SolarPower Europe, Poland will still be Europe's leading solar photovoltaic power market with new power capacity of 4.6GW in 2023, second only to Germany, Spain and Italy.

Last year, PV Tech Premium reported on Poland in two parts, the first looking at grid issues and how to enter the market, and the second looking at the rooftop market. Annual review: Poland’s 2023 full-year photovoltaic bidding review! Poland rises! Become a European photovoltaic powerhouse

Recently, Chint Solar from China announced that the company's ASTRO series of high-efficiency photovoltaic modules have been successfully supplied to Poland's Augstynka Photovoltaic Power Station and Jeziorko Photovoltaic Power Station. As Poland's iconic photovoltaic projects, the two power stations have a total installed capacity of 125MW, helping Poland's low-carbon energy development.

Among them, the Augstynka photovoltaic power station is located in the picturesque Podlasie region of Poland, with a total installed capacity of 25MW. The project started on April 22, 2023, lasted for 8 months, and was successfully connected to the grid on December 29, 2023. Thanks to the excellent performance of CHINT's ASTRO 5 series photovoltaic modules, the Augstynka photovoltaic power station is expected to provide 26 million kilowatt-hours of clean electricity to the local area every year, which is equivalent to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 2,125 tons per year.

The Jeziorko photovoltaic power station is located in the Podkarpacie region of Poland, with a total installed capacity of 100MW. It is a bright renewable energy landscape in the area. The project will start on December 6, 2022, and is expected to be connected to the grid in June 2024. ASTRO 5 series photovoltaic modules will generate 103 million kWh of green energy every year and reduce 82,593 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.Trina solar panels