The capacity of onshore wind farms will be increased primarily through so-called repowering, regardless of the presidential veto; the regulation on this matter is already ready, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Wednesday. He added that electricity from wind turbines will flow “one way or another.” Tusk was responding to the veto of President Karol Nawrocki, who rejected an amendment to the law that would have reduced the minimum distance for wind turbine construction to 500 meters from residential buildings.
Tusk fights for wind turbines
On August 21, President Karol Nawrocki announced that he had vetoed the amendment to the so-called wind turbine law, calling it unfavorable to citizens. At the same time, he signed a draft legislative initiative concerning a freeze on electricity prices, which he said was “literally taken” from the vetoed bill.
“There is a presidential veto, but we have already prepared a regulation, and without the law, regardless of the president’s veto, we will increase the capacity of onshore wind farms, primarily through so-called repowering (replacing older power plants with new ones, though in Poland’s case this may still mean buying used ones from Germany – ed.). This means that in the existing locations, we will replace the turbines with much more efficient ones,” the prime minister said during a briefing. He added that in places where simplified environmental regulations allow, taller masts would be installed.
Tusk’s determination on this issue is yet another sign of how dependent he is on Berlin, and how strong the pressure on him from that direction must be.