The Polish Ministry of Climate and Environment is not giving up on onshore wind energy. After stripping wind-related provisions from the UD332 bill to avoid another presidential veto, the ministry announces a separate law will be prepared. The new act will include a participation fund – the so-called '20,000 zloty per turbine’ – but will not touch the minimum distance rule between turbines and buildings.
The UD332 project was originally meant to relax distance requirements, but in fear of a repeat veto from President Karol Nawrocki, the ministry removed the wind component entirely. The bill now focuses on biogas, biomethane, energy cooperatives and classifying some waste-to-energy heat as renewable. However, the ministry’s press office told WNP that it „does not intend to abandon broad actions aimed at improving the legal environment for onshore wind energy”.
New package without distance rules
The forthcoming separate law will address a participation fund and other solutions previously envisioned in the amendment of the Wind Farm Investment Act. The fund would pay up to 20,000 zloty annually to each household located near a new wind farm, provided certain conditions are met. The investor or the wind farm owner would foot the bill.
Nevertheless, the draft will not include changes to the mandatory distance between turbines and residential buildings. According to the ministry, this issue has lost some of its urgency because modern turbines are so large that even with relaxed regulations, a distance of around 700 metres or more would be technically necessary anyway – something industry representatives confirm off the record.
Participation fund and faster procedures
Alongside the participation fund, the package covers repowering regulations – a June 2026 decree already facilitates replacing older turbines with newer ones – and the implementation of Accelerated Renewable Energy Zones. The ministry is also working on another project, UC118, which aims to cut the time needed for wind farm investments from the current seven years to five.
Deputy Climate Minister Urszula Zielińska told WNP: – We have written further steps to accelerate investments in clean and cheap energy sources produced in Poland. We are on track to create one of the best renewable energy markets in Europe by the end of the year. – She also mentioned that the distance issue is now being handled by the Senate, which has its own proposals. The ministry has received them for review and assesses them positively, but their future remains uncertain.
While the distance rule – currently requiring 500 or 700 metres depending on conditions – is not part of the executive’s new draft, parliamentary initiatives may still spark debate on the matter. For now, the sector is focusing on the practicalities of modern turbine dimensions rather than legal battles over metres.
Źródło: wnp.pl, Fot. H_Visuals / Shutterstock
