PGE Polish Energy Group S.A. has signed an agreement with a consortium comprising Polimex Mostostal and Siemens Energy for the construction of an 882 MW gas-steam unit in Rybnik. In addition to the general investment contract for the construction of the unit, worth approximately PLN 3 billion net, a multi-year maintenance contract worth more than PLN 0.76 billion net was also concluded.
The new gas-fired unit in Rybnik will replace four decommissioned coal-fired units with a total capacity of 900 MW at the existing Rybnik Power Plant. The unit is scheduled to be commissioned in December 2026.
“The contract signed today in Rybnik marks the start of one of the largest and most modern energy investments in Silesia. The gas-steam block, which will be built in less than four years in Rybnik, will contribute to the reduction of the national economy’s carbon footprint and thus improve air quality in the region. It will also bring concrete savings on the purchase of CO2 emission allowances in the PGE Group,”
says Wojciech Dąbrowski, President of the Management Board of PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna
“At the same time, the new investment will strengthen Poland’s energy security and ensure a stable energy supply for approx. 2 million households and new jobs both during construction and subsequent operation. This is a tangible development impulse for the region, which is particularly important for us in the current economic situation and because of the energy transition,”
adds Wojciech Dąbrowski.
“We are very pleased that we are inaugurating this much-awaited and much-needed investment for Silesia today. The construction of the Rybnik unit is a key contract for Polimex, but also another great step in the modernisation of the Polish energy sector. At this point, I would like to thank the Management Board of the PGE Group for their trust and for entrusting us with such an important project to carry out. I am sure that our experienced project team, in cooperation with the consortium partner and technology partner Siemens Energy, will successfully build another power unit for the PGE Group,”
says Polimex Mostostal CEO Krzysztof Figat.
As Grzegorz Należyty, President of the Management Board of Siemens Energy in Poland and Regional Vice President for Eastern Europe at Siemens Energy points out: “Due to the enormous challenges in the transformation of the energy sector, investments based on state-of-the-art technologies are necessary. They play a key role in ensuring energy security. The Rybnik gas and steam unit is an excellent example of this type of investment. Siemens Energy will supply the technologically advanced 9000HL turbine, which is one of the largest gas turbines available and will support the transition to a more stable energy system.”
The gas and steam unit in Rybnik will be the largest and most efficient unit of its kind in Poland and one of the largest in Europe. The investment will meet the most stringent emission limits resulting from the BAT conclusions for gas-steam units. Emissions of dust and sulphur oxides will be reduced almost to zero, which will significantly affect air quality in the Rybnik region. The emission factor of the new unit is three times lower than for 200 MW class coal-fired units and amounts to 320 g of CO2 per kWh of electricity generated.
The new gas-steam unit will have the option of co-firing hydrogen in gas fuel. The unit will be cooled in an open system, i.e., with water from the Rybnik Reservoir, which will have a positive impact on the existing ecosystem. The technological solutions applied will ensure compliance with the assumptions of a closed-cycle economy.
In December 2022, the gas-steam unit in Rybnik was awarded a 17-year contract in the main auction of the power market, which will come into effect in 2027, ensuring a return on investment. The project will be partly financed with funds raised from PGE’s new 2022 share issue.
The construction of the gas-steam unit will allow the reconstruction of the generation potential of the Rybnik Power Plant. The dynamic development of renewable energy sources in Poland, in which the PGE Group has the largest share, requires the maintenance of high flexibility in the operation of individual power units. The new gas-steam unit in Rybnik will constitute a stable and flexible source of energy supply balancing the production capacity of renewable energy sources.
