EC opens investigation into Polish state aid support for nuclear power plant
The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether public support that Poland plans to grant for a nuclear power plant in Lubiatowo-Kopalino is in line with EU State aid rules, the EC announced on its website.
"The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether public support that Poland plans to grant for a nuclear power plant in Lubiatowo-Kopalino is in line with EU State aid rules," the EC wrote in the statement.
In September 2024, Poland notified the EC of its plan to support state-owned company Polskie Elektrownie Jadrowe (PEJ) in the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Lubiatowo-Kopalino.
"The public support that Poland plans to grant for its first nuclear power plant needs to be assessed by the Commission to make sure that it is in line with State aid rules, which aim to preserve competition within the internal market," said Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, quoted in the statement.
"According to the Competition rules, we will also evaluate the impact on the EU’s internal energy market. As usual, all interested parties can submit their observations," she added.
At a recent meeting with reporters, Poland's deputy minister for the nuclear power, the government's plenipotentiary for strategic energy infrastructure Wojciech Wrochna announced that the EC could open a state aid procedure for the first nuclear power plant by the end of the year.
The new plant, with an electricity generation capacity of up to 3750 MW, is scheduled to start operating in the second half of 2030. The total investment costs of the project are estimated to be approximately EUR 45 billion.
Poland plans to support this investment through an equity injection of approximately EUR 14 billion covering 30 percent of the project's costs, State guarantees covering 100 percent of debt taken by PEJ to finance the investment project; and a two-way contract for difference providing revenue stability over the entire lifetime of the power plant of 60 years.
Receiving the European Commission's approval for state aid is a condition for providing PEJ with the funds necessary to implement the next phases of the project, including the signing of a comprehensive EPC contract and the procurement of key components, including in particular long-delivery items.
jz/ ao/