"We are actively shaping the future of energy in the Baltic Sea region, which is of strategic importance for the energy security and economy of Poland and the entire region. By 2035, we will invest up to PLN 380 billion in, m.in, the development of renewable energy sources, including offshore wind energy, as well as in gas infrastructure and new technologies, especially in the area of energy storage. Thanks to cooperation with other entities in the region, we can use its full potential and provide safe, cheaper and cleaner energy for us and our part of Europe," says Ireneusz Fąfara, President of the ORLEN Management Board.

The report 'Cooperation in the Baltic Sea: An impulse for the energy transition', prepared by the ORLEN Group and S&P, indicates that the Baltic Sea region is responsible for more than one-third of energy consumption and emissions in the European Union, making it an area of strategic importance for Europe's decarbonisation. The total potential of renewable energy sources that can be installed (offshore and onshore wind farms, solar and hydropower) is 4.4 thousand TWh, which is 4.5 times more than the total energy production in the Baltic region in 2023. At the same time, the region is facing a classic example of the energy dilemma, i.e. the search for a way to reconcile energy security, sustainability and affordability.

The solution may be closer cooperation, especially between eight countries in the region - Polish, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which would allow it to fully use its potential and, as a result, achieve the goals of the energy transition faster.

The report shows that savings of EUR 9 billion (over PLN 30 billion) per year by 2040 may be brought by the development of energy interconnectors, i.e. connections for gas transmission between countries. Investments in them could support the use of the capacity of LNG terminals and pipelines in the region. According to S&P experts, the development of the existing regasification infrastructure would optimize the distribution of 52 billion cubic meters of imported LNG in 2030.

Hydrogen technologies are also a field for cooperation between the Baltic countries. Hydrogen and its derivatives can be a key decarbonisation solution for heavy industry and transport in the Baltic region. ORLEN supports the idea of a regional hydrogen auction that would enable the industry to have cheaper and more stable access to this fuel.

The challenge for the Baltic states is to reduce emissions from dispersed industrial plants that are difficult to reduce. A solution with great potential may be the construction of special storage facilities and storage of carbon dioxide under the Baltic Sea. It is a fully proven and safe solution used successfully in the North Sea, for example. The ORLEN Group's new strategy is in line with these assumptions, which provides for building capacities in the field of capture, transport and storage services with a potential of 4 million tonnes of CO2.

The total potential of the Baltic Sea in the area of offshore wind energy is 93 GW, of which only about 3 GW is partially launched. For comparison, in the North Sea it is 32 GW. Experts emphasize that without the start of cooperation in the field of maritime spatial planning and a harmonized approach to issuing permits, it may not be possible to achieve the goal set in the Marienborg Declaration – 19.6 GW of installed capacity in the OWF in the Baltic Sea by 2030.

The report Cooperation in the Baltic Sea: An impulse for the energy transition was initiated by ORLEN and S&P Global Commodity Insights. The analysis takes into account Poland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The report has been prepared in English and is available here.