Hydro project in gov't hands but energy plans uncertain

A U.S.-Swiss consortium, Ortima Treuhand, submitted a letter of intent last week to the Infrastructure and Environment Ministries to invest in a $3 billion hydroelectric dam project for the lower Wisła river. If approved, the project could be initiated as early as the end of this year, according to Bernard Kwiatkowski, the president of the Foundation for Lower Wisła Dams, which is representing the consortium in negotiations. The proposal describes the creation of a seven-point hydroelectric dam system set to run from Ciechocinek to Gdańsk. The proposal also sees the consortium putting up 100% of the investment and using the latest available technology in the field. "The consortium is hoping for feedback as soon as possible and hopes to invest this year if all goes according to plan," Kwiatkowski said. "This is the first time we have had serious foreign investment for such a project." The foundation was set up in 1992 to exploit the lower Wisła's hydroelectric potential and encourage and develop investment opportunities. It was given until 2010 to deliver a viable project for the river. Environmentalists wary But some environmental groups, such as the Polish division of the World Wildlife Fund, said that despite its renewable energy tag, hydroelectric power can be irreparably damaging to the natural habitat and biodiversity of the river. Pressure from such groups has so far been a leading factor in the Environment Ministry's rejection of such plans, according to Stanisław Gołźbiowski, the head of solar and hydro affairs at the EC Baltic Renewable Energy Center (EC BREC). "There are certainly many opinions regarding such a project and it's difficult to say," Gołźbiowski said. "Personally I am torn between the two. On one hand, it's the cleanest and most powerful of renewable energy sources. At the same time, there are great risks. If an accident occurred, it could see the pollution of the surrounding area, and it would also ruin the biodiversity of the river." But Kwiatkowski was optimistic about the outcome of negotiations with the ministry, which he said were set to go ahead this week. "As well as the obvious clean energy production, this will bring seven new bridges that will allow people to make more use of the A1, which runs along the Wisła," Kwiatkowski said. "It will also make water and irrigation possibilities accessible to new parts of the country, which we would like to use for the growing of biofuel crops, such as rapeseed." Ministry denies talks The Environment Ministry's director of water resources, Tomasz Walczykiewicz, denied that any dialogue would take place in the near future between parties, but confirmed receipt of the proposal. The project falls in line with a government strategy ratified in August 2001, created to encourage the use of renewable energy sources by industry. According to the strategy, 2.5% of all energy used by industry must come from renewable energy sources by 2000. That figure should increase to 7.5% by 2010 and move to 14.5% by 2020. Poland's numbers are half those stipulated by the European Union's strategy, according to Wojciech Stźpniewski, the project leader of the climate and energy project of the Polish division of the World Wildlife Fund. "The main problems are that there are no penalties for failing to buy these quotas of renewables for industry, and with no one to enforce the law, it goes unheeded," Stźpniewski said. "It discourages investment in renewable energy as there is simply no guarantee there will be a market for it." And according to Gołźbiowski, Poland still has not achieved the 2.5% quota. "It's unlikely the 2.5% has been achieved, and it seems the government wants to walk away from this strategy because it's not pro-business and it's not in the interests of major energy producers."