The European Investment Bank is investing a fortune in Orlen’s maritime project

Orlen obtained gigantic financing for a wind farm project in the Baltic Sea. A large part of the funds will come from the European Investment Bank.

Baltic Power with funds from Europe

Baltic Power – an Orlen Group company – signed loan agreements with a consortium consisting of 25 Polish and foreign financial institutions to finance the construction project of an offshore wind farm located in the Baltic Sea, with a maximum capacity of up to 1,200 MW. Based on the agreements, the consortium will grant Baltic Power an investment loan in the amount of EUR 3.6 billion (over PLN 16.66 billion) for a period of 23 years.

– The cooperation of the European Investment Bank with Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego is of a strategic nature – for many years we have been supporting investments that are of key importance for the Polish economy. Such an investment is the construction of wind farms in the Baltic Sea by Baltic Power. For this purpose, the EIB has allocated EUR 610 million in financing, of which EUR 300 million will be transferred through BGK. It will be the first offshore wind farm in Poland and one of the largest in the world and will contribute to the diversification of the Polish energy sector. The investment will accelerate Poland’s decarbonization, increase energy security and make a significant contribution to the REPowerEU plan, which is intended to eliminate Europe’s dependence on fossil fuel imports. Ensuring energy security and transforming the energy sector is one of the EIB’s priorities and we are glad that Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego supports us in this – said EIB Vice-President Teresa Czerwińska in a comment for the ISBnews agency.

The first EIB investment in offshore in Poland

As we read in the bank’s announcement, this will be the first EIB investment in offshore wind farm projects in Poland.

Baltic Power is a company established exclusively for the implementation of this project, owned by Orlen (51% of shares) and Northland Power (49% of shares). The EIB provides direct financing to the project company and also provides an intermediate tranche to Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego to further support the project.

– As a development bank, we have been involved in financing Poland’s energy transformation for years. Last year alone, we allocated PLN 100 billion to support the domestic low- and zero-emission energy sector. We see potential in improving Poland’s energy mix, among others: in the development of offshore wind energy. That is why we decided to co-finance the construction of the first Polish wind farm in the Baltic Sea – one of the largest investments of this type in the world, which has entered the implementation phase. Such an investment is an impulse for the domestic industry and an opportunity for Polish entrepreneurs – indicated by BGK management board member Marek Tomczuk in a comment for ISBnews.