Development of the economy and energy security – these issues dominated the 6th “Development Vision” Forum that was held on 19-20 June 2023 at the Naval Academy in Gdynia. The Polish Geological Institute-PIB was represented by Director, dr inż. Mateusz Damrat.

Meetings were participated by representatives from the world of politics, business and science, including geology.

The participants discussed investments for Poland, challenges for the economy and the energy transition, especially from the perspective of hydrogen economy, nuclear energy and renewable energy development.

Securing the current and future demand for energy is a crucial element of the economy’s development. Methods of providing Poland with energy security were discussed during numerous discussion panels.

Dr inż. Mateusz Damrat, Director of PIG-PIB was invited to participate in the panel entitled “Development of renewable energy in Poland”. The discussion was moderated by Arkadiusz Marat – President of the Management Board at ELMECH ASE Sp. z o.o., a member of the Polish Energy Storage Association.

Discussion panel entitled “Development of renewable energy in Poland” during the Development Vision Forum in Gdynia

In the course of the debate, experts discussed the role of renewable energy sources (RES) in the Polish energy mix. The meeting's participants agreed that RES are the future, and the projected increase in energy demand means that it should be based on many sources both currently and in the near future.

However, the optimal utilization of wind and PV energy, with currently largest potential in terms of producing electricity, requires modernizing transmission networks and constructing energy storages, especially at transformer stations. Furthermore, the participants pointed to the urgent need to introduce legal provisions governing issues associated with renewable energy.

The discussion on energy storages could not proceed without issues related to storing hydrogen in geological structures. Director Damrat emphasized that the geological structure of Poland favours underground storage of gases – natural or green hydrogen, produced from RES generation surpluses via the electrolysis process; he also indicated cavern storages formed through leaching of salt present in salt structures (salt domes or bedded deposits) as the best for this purpose.

The Director of PIG-PIB also presented Poland’s potential in terms of geothermal energy, which is not currently used to generate electricity but constitutes a significant source of heat or, as in the case of ground heat pumps, also chill.

PIG-PIB's participation in the Development Vision Forum has been organized as part of the task: Domestic cooperation and promoting the activities of state geological survey in the years 2021-2023, financed from the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

Recorded broadcast of the discussion panel: Development of renewable energy in Poland