Jakub Lubiński, Orlen: GZM is a good example of implementing hydrogen solutions

In the panel entitled “Cities of the future: investment strategies, public policies, green transformation and the role of spatial planning and architecture in shaping sustainable cities” was attended by:

• Marcin Grądzki, responsible for climate policy in the capital city of Warsaw,

• Anna Gołębicka, representative for communication of key projects of the Upper Silesian-Zagłębie Metropolis brand,

• Jan Szyszko, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy

• Jakub Lubiński, Director of the Hydrogen Technologies Office at Orlen.

Anna Gołębicka started by emphasizing that cities live in extremely interesting times today, where deglobalization, local content and resilience are important, which means that we need to be prepared for the unknown. – We must manage it so that, for example, a hospital can function both during a crisis and a potential war. We cannot wait, we must be ready for crisis situations ourselves, she said.

Deputy Minister Jan Szyszko emphasized that we need to change the vectors in the country’s development strategy for the next 10 years. We need to focus on the scaling effect, not a broad “grant” – he noted. – We have a number of cities that will fall into economic collapse without the prospect of public support. Either we invest in their development – industry, public services, transport – or in 10 years we will raise the “Polish Detroit” from its knees.

Jakub Lubiński from Orlen clearly emphasized that the company is currently at the early implementation stage when it comes to hydrogen investments in cities. Because – as he noted – there were ideas once. And the ideas have already turned into concepts, and the concepts into concrete implementations.

– We are pursuing a transformation path in conjunction with cities and public transport operators. Hydrogen buses are zero-emission during use and reduce noise. Hydrogen solutions will be important in the future and will influence the comfort and improvement of life of residents of large cities – he pointed out.

Anna Gołębicka noticed that in Silesia everyone cares about their identity and integrity, which resulted in a situation in which when someone wanted to travel from one city to another, they even had to exchange their public transport ticket twice. We managed to change it. GZM has built integrated transport, one of the most modern transport systems in Europe, where: there is a “start stop” system, you can use a dedicated application, where the bicycle serves a transport function and can be used after purchasing a transport ticket.

Marcin Grądzki from the capital city of Warsaw Warsaw emphasized that the capital’s approach to management is to create change together with its residents, not to force it. – We first electrify the fleet ourselves or invest in sustainable construction – he noted.

Jakub Lubiński, director of the Hydrogen Technologies Office at Orlen, noted that the example of GZM shows how investments in hydrogen solutions can be carried out in a well-thought-out way, without causing any problems for anyone. – The economies of scale are already visible in GZM – today we are talking about a network of hydrogen stations in Silesia. This is a model in which we deliver hydrogen to the distribution point, and at the same time we have a certain recipient who has to make a certain number of trips on the city’s rolling stock. This approach brings results and success. Cities get short refueling times, fuel availability and zero emissions – emphasized Lubiński.

Minister Szyszko also agreed that the example of GZM is worth praising and scaling. And he reminded that in order to support the development of cities, among others, in the area of ​​transport and water and sewage investments, the “Local Government 2.0” act is to be created, which the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy is currently working on.

It is intended to redefine relations between municipalities and metropolises and facilitate the creation of development relationships. – We have many examples of wild suburbanization. The idea is for the act to create legal conditions that will facilitate cooperation between large cities and obwarzanki in the implementation of joint ventures, he added.