Changes To RES Act In Poland (February 2018)

The long-awaited latest version of the draft amendment of the Act of 20 February 2015 on Renewable Energy Sources ("RES Act"), the Act of 20 May 2016 on Investments in Wind Power Plants ("Distance Law") and the Act of 7 July 1994 – the Building Law ("Building Law") was finally published on 20 February 2018. The planned amendment ("Planned Amendment") is to be still approved by the Council of Ministers and will then be sent to the Sejm and Senate for further work.

The Planned Amendment is to a great extent the effect of negotiations with the European Commission on approval of the Polish auction system. Although the Commission approved the auction system back in December 2017, Poland still has to introduce significant changes to the rules by which auctions are conducted. In accordance with the said decision taken in December by the European Commission, state aid worth around PLN 40 billion is to be granted through auctions held by 2021. In addition, under the