Energy Market Actors
Electricity market
The electricity market has been completely open since July 2007.
Already in 1998 the opening of the market began with 21 large consumers of more than 500 GWh/year. Actually the past experience shows, that very few eligible customers changed suppliers. In 2005, only customers who consumed more than 1 GWh/year could choose their supplier (6000 consumers, or 52% of the market). In 2008, nearly 100% of Polish consumers were still supplied by default suppliers (92.3 % of the total consumption).
The EC supports the end of the long-term electricity contracts, and in October 2007 authorised the implementation of a compensation system. Since the 1990s, Poland has created a system of purchase agreements for long-term electricity contracts, some of the running until 2027 to ensure the security of its supply and the upgrading of its production infrastructures. In 2008, long-term contracts represented 7.1% of the sales volumes, compared to 31.5% in 2007.
[Enerdata]
PSE (Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne)
The Polish Power grid company PSE is responsible for the transmission of electricity in Poland. Its only shareholder is the Ministry of Treasury.
The subject of the PSE Operator S.A. activity is to provide the services of electricity transmission in compliance with the required criteria of the security of the Polish Power System operation.
The main objectives of the PSE Operator activity are:
- providing electricity transmission services and ensuring secure and cost-effective operation of the Polish Power System whilst meeting the conditions of synchronous operation with other European systems,
- ensuring the necessary development of the domestic transmission grid and cross-border interconnections,
- making transmission capacity available on market based methods for cross-border exchange purposes,
- creating the technical infrastructure for the operation of the domestic wholesale electricity market.
The restructuring of the sector led to the creation of two large companies, PGE and PKE.
PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna S.A.
PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna S.A. is the largest power producer and supplier in Poland and one of the biggest heat and power sector companies in Central and Eastern Europe. Due to a combination of its own fuel (lignite) resources, power generation and final distribution networks, PGE delivers power supply to approximately 5 million households, businesses and institutions.
The PGE Capital Group has operated under its current structure since 2007. The activities of Polska Grupa Energetyczna focus on the following areas: Conventional Power Generation, Wholesale, Distribution, Retail, Renewable Power Generation. Sustainable development is one of the major principles of PGE Capital Group.
The company's net power generation amounts to about 56 TWh, which constitutes 42% of the national electricity output. The PGE Group employs over 46.000. workers and has 12.4 GW of the installed generation capacities.
By 2012 the Company intends to spend PLN 38.9 bn on investment. Over 20% of these funds will be expenditure on the development of renewable sources of energy.
The PGE Capital Group – key facts and figures (data as for 2009)
- 53,8 TWh – the volume of the power generated by the PGE Capital Group.
- 43,1 m tons –the volume of the lignite excavated by the PGE Capital Group's lignite mines.
- 12.4 GW – the installed capacity of the power plants and cogeneration plants belonging to the PGE Capital Group (this places PGE in twelfth position on the list of Europe's biggest power generation companies).
PGE’s production is concentrated in 4 large power plants:
- Belchatow, the largest power plan in Europe (lignite, 4320 MW)
- Turow (lignite, 2088 MW)
- Dolna Odra (coal, 1984 MW)
- Opole (coal, 1492)
Południowy Koncern Energetyczny SA (PKE, The Southern Poland Power Company)
PKE is at present one of the largest power industry companies in Poland and has an installed capacity of 5,000 MW. The company's share in the national production of electrical energy is around 14% and around 16% in heat production for the local market in 2009.
The core business activity of PKE includes:
- generation of electrical energy
- transmission and distribution of electrical energy
- production and distribution of heat.
The following companies were incorporated into the PKE: Elektrownia "Jaworzno III" SA (Power Plant Jaworzno III), Elektrownia "Laziska" SA (Power Plant Laziska), Elektrownia "Siersza" SA (Power Plant Siersza), Elektrownia "Lagisza" SA (Power Plant Lagisza) and Elektrownia "Halemba" SA (Power Plant Halemba).
Power plant | Installed electrical | Available thermal |
|---|---|---|
PKE Jaworzno III | 1535 | 372 |
PKE Laziska Power | 1155 | 196 |
PKE SA Lagisza Power | 840 | 425 |
PKE Siersza Power | 786 | 36.5 |
PKE Halemba Power | 200 | 58 |
PKE Blachownia | 165 | 174 |
PKE Katowice | 135 | 693 |
PKE Bielsko-Biala | 136.2 | 447 |
Status of deregulation
The electricity market has been completely open since July 2007.
Regulator
The Energy Regulatory Office (URE) whose President is appointed by the Prime Minister for a 5-year term, is responsible for the realization of tasks in the scope of fuel and energy management control as well as promotion of competition, granting licenses, approving tariffs and settling disputes.
Competition in generation
An authorisation (licensing) procedure is used. The President of URE may issue licenses for new generation capacity on the basis of the following criteria: technical and financial capabilities, location of facility, professional qualifications of employees, state energy policy and public interest.
Unbundling
Generation, transmission and distribution are under responsibility of different companies.
Tariff setting
Generators and electricity traders have been released from to the obligation to approve their tariffs by the regulator (URE) once they have proved that they are operating under competitive conditions. Transmission and distribution companies are obliged to submit their tariffs for ERO approval.
Oil and gas market
Oil
A law for the privatisation of the oil sector was adopted in September 2002. The main companies operating in the oil sector have been privatised (PKN Orlen, Grupa Lotos, Chemical Zachem, etc.).
PKN Orlen
PKN ORLEN is one of Central Europe’s largest refiners of crude oil. PKN Orlen SA is speczialized in processing crude oil into unleaded petrol, diesel, heating oil, and aviation fuel as well as plastics and other petroleum related products.
In 2010, PKN ORLEN operated 7 refineries, of which 3 are located in Plock, Trzebinia and Jedlicze (Poland), another 3 in Litvinov, Kralupy and Pardubice (the Czech Republic) and 1 in Mazeikiu (Lithuania). The total deep processing capacity of the refineries reaches 31.7 million tonnes per annum (PKN ORLEN share). PKN ORLEN’s retail network comprises approximately 2,600 outlets offering services in Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic and Lithuania.
Gas
The gas market has been completely open since 2007.
The PGNiG Group is the leader of the Polish natural gas market, as well as the only vertically integrated gas company in Poland: small gas traders that purchase gas from PGNiG accounted for just 2% of the retail markte in 2008. In 2008 PGNiG has started two important investment projects: develop the Lubiatów-Międzychód-Grotów field (LMG field) and expansion of Wierzchowice underground gas storage facility.
Two companies are now in charge of gas transportation: Gaz-System and EuRoPol Gaz, in charge of the operation of the Polish part of the Yamal gas pipeline. In October 2009, Gazprom raised its interest in EuRoPol to 50%.
Coal market
Coal and lignite production has been falling slowly since 2000 (135 Mt in 2009, compared to 163 Mt in 2000). The production is distributed between bituminous coal and lignite. Approximately 50% of coal production is intended for the production of electricity, and approx. 22% for exports. Coal exports equal about 14 Mt and make Poland the world’s tenth largest coal exporter.
The Coal Corporation, a monopolistic State structure which managed the coal industry until 1990, was replaced by a financial state holding, the State Coal Agency. The majority of the mines have been grouped into 7 coal companies: Kompania Weglowa (17 mines and 4 production centres), Katowicka Grupa Kapitowa (6 mines), Poludniowy Koncern Weglowy (1 mine), KWK Budry, Lubelsi Wegiel Bogdandka, Siltech and Jastrzebska Spolka Weglowa (5 mines).
