Every one of the 76 turbines at the Baltic Power offshore wind farm has been mounted in the Baltic Sea, closing the key construction stage of an investment worth around PLN 20 billion. Orlen and its partner Northland Power expect the farm to reach full capacity by the end of 2026, with commercial operation starting at the turn of 2026 and 2027.
The milestone was announced after WNP journalists had visited the farm at sea in August, several weeks before the company confirmed that installation work was done. First electricity flowed into the national grid on 10 July and has been fed in gradually ever since, depending on testing schedules.
– We needed 15 years to symbolically start up Baltic Power – said Orlen CEO Ireneusz Fąfara.
– 76 turbines are installed. It is a great moment – he added.
– Thanks to Baltic Power, every Polish town has gained access to the sea. We will all use electricity from Baltic Power. It is a completely new source of electricity that has given rise to an entire sector of the Polish economy – stressed the head of the concern.
– This is a breakthrough project for Poland and an excellent example of what can be achieved through strong partnerships – emphasised Christine Healy, CEO of Northland Power.
Fąfara said the offshore farm will run at full capacity by the end of 2026. Construction is to be wrapped up within the same year, while the official commercial launch is scheduled for the turn of 2026 and 2027.
Trial output sold without state support
Baltic Power still operates without a full licence, yet its test electricity is not wasted. The company pays a pre-licence fee into the state budget, which allows it to trade the output on an extraordinary basis. Sales are handled by Orlen Energia under a PPA signed with Baltic Power, permitting the energy to be sold on the market, including the spot market.
Turbines are being tested in batches and then taken offline for a few days or longer to undergo inspections. In such circumstances the reference price from the contract for difference does not apply, which means the power is sold at market prices with no state top-up – a mechanism that would normally pay the producer when exchange prices fall below the agreed threshold.
The CfD guaranteed price for first-phase Polish offshore wind projects is PLN 319.6/MWh at 2021 levels. Once indexation is taken into account, that comes to roughly PLN 459/MWh for 2026, according to simplified WNP calculations.
Grid, cranes and security
Offshore substations collect power from all 76 turbines using more than 200 kilometres of internal submarine cables. Transformers on those platforms raise the voltage before the energy travels along export cables to an onshore station and finally into the National Power System.
– Offshore substations are the core of the entire project and at the same time the gateway through which the generated energy reaches land. We collect power from 76 turbines there, using more than 200 kilometres of internal submarine cables – said Adam Rymarczuk, Deputy OSS Manager at Baltic Power.
– Connecting offshore wind farms is an unprecedented project for our system – added the Baltic Power representative.
– The uniqueness of this task is clear at the PSE station in Choczewo. New infrastructure using single-phase voltage transformers was designed specifically to carry power away from the Baltic. This is the first such case in the Polish power sector, which best shows how offshore wind drives a technological leap on land – said Rymarczuk.
Environmental questions extend beyond the turbines themselves. At sea the lowest point of a blade can sit 22-25 metres above the water, and farms are located away from bird migration corridors. One species still crosses the Baltic Power site.
– An unusual challenge identified for this project are cranes, which during migration across the Baltic, especially in autumn, fly through the farm area – said Michał Śmielak, Environment Lead at Baltic Power.
– Baltic Power will have an automatic turbine shutdown system consisting of a radar and a camera system. It will be able to recognise the species and the flight path, so that when cranes are detected, individual turbines are switched off sequentially – explained Śmielak.
The farm is built to operate for at least 30 years, and the fate of its foundations remains open. Monopiles weighing several hundred tonnes each are driven tens of metres into the seabed, and removing or destroying them would be difficult. If they turn out to have become a significant habitat for marine organisms, environmental decisions require leaving those fragments in place to protect the newly created ecosystem.
– Offshore wind is still a relatively new industry, so as a whole sector we are constantly learning, also when it comes to decommissioning. After the lifetime of an offshore wind farm, all its elements should be removed – said the expert.
Protection now concerns more than nature. Baltic Power’s press office says safeguarding the farm, its service base and the connection infrastructure rests on an integrated protection plan with tailored monitoring, reconnaissance and response systems, and that the company has been in constant dialogue with civil and military authorities, public administration, the national grid operator and the Maritime Regional Unit of the Border Guard since the design stage.
The plant’s installed capacity is close to 1.2 GW, with each turbine rated at 15 MW. Once all 76 units work simultaneously rather than in batches, the venture shifts from a construction and technology exercise into day-to-day service for the system. Answers on efficiency and profitability will come only after at least 30 days of uninterrupted operation can be summarised.
Źródło: WNP.pl, Fot. Kacper Świsłowski / PTWP
