President Karol Nawrocki has refused to sign the amendment to the Act on Oil, Petroleum Products, and Natural Gas Reserves. In his justification, he emphasized that the changes would weaken Poland’s energy security. The head of state’s decision sparked a broad debate among politicians and experts.
Threat to Energy Security
President Karol Nawrocki decided to veto the amendment adopted by the Sejm on August 5, 2025. In a special motion submitted to parliament, he stated:
“I refuse to sign the Act of August 5, 2025, amending the Act on Oil, Petroleum Products, and Natural Gas Reserves, as well as on the rules of conduct in the event of threats to the state’s fuel security and disruptions in the oil market, along with certain other acts.”
In a 12-page justification, the president stressed that the proposed changes could pose a serious risk to the country:
“Lowering this standard was justified in 2022, but making it permanent has an adverse effect on security. The result is lower operational readiness in the initial phase of a crisis and less pressure to expand domestic storage capacity,” the president pointed out.
Karol Nawrocki also drew attention to the risks of storing gas reserves outside the country’s borders:
“It is impossible to ignore the obvious danger that, if natural gas reserves are kept outside the territory of the Republic of Poland, there is a justified risk of limited access to activate those reserves,” he wrote.
The president’s decision quickly drew reactions online. One user, “Max Hübner,” wrote on the platform X:
“President Nawrocki’s veto of the EU-imposed amendment to the Oil and Gas Reserves Act is, in my opinion, the most important veto. An unbelievably short-sighted project, full of loopholes and dangers. All 12 pages of the president’s justification. It makes your hair stand on end.”