Polish Grid Limits Renewable Power Generation Due to Oversupply

(Bloomberg) -- Poland ordered renewable energy providers to cut generation due to an oversupply of electricity, highlighting the challenges the nation’s grid faces from the widening use of green power.

Sunny weather increased production from solar panels at a time of reduced weekend demand, triggering the need to balance the country’s power system, state grid operator Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne said on its website Sunday. The oversupply exceeded 3 gigawatts, which prompted the company to use special rules related to energy security threats.

Poland, historically dependent on coal-fired power, is struggling with the switch to intermittent renewable sources, with connections for new projects often refused due to grid constraints. The boom in household and commercial-size solar panels has boosted the capacity of photovoltaic installations to 13 gigawatts, while that for wind farms amounts to 9.5 gigawatts.  

On Sunday, the country exported about 2.8 gigawatts of available capacity, with local demand reduced to 14.2 gigawatts, grid data show. Renewable sources contributed to almost half of that production.

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