Europe / Caspian / CIS
Country profile: Poland
Location: | billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
Climate: | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers |
Terrain: | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border |
Size: | 312679 sq. km total (Land area: 304459 sq. km Water area: 8220 sq.km) |
Population: | 38,500,696 (July 2008 est.) |
Languages: | Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census) |
Government: | republic |
Capital city: | Warsaw |
Legal system: | based on a mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover Communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts |
Currency: | zloty (PLN) |
Licensing: |
Country profile
Poland, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic (commonly referred to as Slovakia), and Hungary are members of the Visegrad Group, created in February 1991 at the northern Hungarian town of Visegrad. After World War II until 1989-1990, these countries were Communist states, as well as members of the Warsaw Pact. On January 1, 1993, the Czech and Slovak Republics, previously Czechoslovakia, split to form two separate states. During the past decade, the Visegrad group has made the transition to democracy and to market-based economies. On May 1, 2004, the Visegrad countries became members of the European Union (EU). In 1999, Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic became the first former Warsaw Pact countries to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) . Slovakia joined NATO in 2004. The Czech Republic became a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1995, Hungary and Poland joined in 1996, and Slovakia in 2001.
As members of the Visegrad Group, the four countries also belong to Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) . Slovenia , Romania , and Bulgaria are members too. The Visegrad countries are dependent on trade with the EU, in particular with Germany . These four countries also continue to face economic restructuring challenges, including: modernizing large, and to a certain extent, antiquated agricultural sectors (especially in Poland); implementing more energy efficient processes for industry in order to decrease energy consumption; absorbing the costs from cleaning up heavily-polluting industries; and adapting industries and services to EU standards.
Energy production and consumption
Oil | Gas | |
Production: | 32,800 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 5 billion cu m (2005) |
Consumption: | 462,700 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 15 billion cu m (2005) |
Exports: | 51,780 bbl/day (2004 est.) | 42 million cu m (2005) |
Imports: | 480,300 bbl/day (2004 est.) | 10 billion cu m (2005) |
Reserves: | 96 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.) | 158 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
Major fields: |
Poland - recent news
20 May 25 |
Poland: Equinor and Polenergia take Final Investment Decisions for Baltyk 2 and Baltyk 3 offshore wind projects The project joint venture partners – Norway's Equinor and Polenergia, Poland's largest private energy group – have taken the final investment decisions for the Baltyk 2 and Baltyk 3 offshore wind farms, ahead of full-scale construction. |
15 May 25 |
Poland: Vestas and LM Wind Power sign deal for blades factory in Poland, strengthening Vestas’ European manufacturing footprint Vestas and LM Wind Power have announced a deal that will see LM Wind Power’s blade factory in Goleniów near Szczecin, Poland, become part of Vestas’ growing European manufacturing setup. The factory produces blades for Vestas’ onshore wind solutions and will continue to play a key role in meeting Poland’s and the rest of Europe’s growing energy needs. |
15 May 25 |
Poland: Biogas: TotalEnergies and HitecVision partner to pursue the development of Polska Grupa Biogazowa in Poland TotalEnergies has signed a Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with HitecVision, a Norwegian investment company specializing in energy, for the sale of 50% of Polska Grupa Biogazowa ('PGB') for an enterprise value of €190 million. |
01 May 25 |
Poland: Equinor and Polenergia secure Final Environmental Decision for the Baltyk 1 Project - paving the way for Poland’s largest offshore wind farm The decision marks a milestone in the further development of what could be the largest offshore wind farm in the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. Baltyk 1, a project developed jointly by Equinor and Polenergia is being prepared for Poland’s 2025 offshore auction. |
10 Mar 25 |
Poland/Ukraine: ORLEN to supply gas to Ukraine ORLEN and Naftogaz have signed a memorandum of cooperation in the LNG sector. Its implementation will allow Ukraine to create a more diversified supply of this strategic commodity. The first outcome of the agreement is a transaction to sell gas derived from the regasification of an LNG cargo by ORLEN. |
Poland - more news
Other countries in this region
- Afghanistan,
- Albania,
- Armenia,
- Austria,
- Azerbaijan,
- Belarus,
- Belgium,
- Bosnia and Herzegovina,
- Bulgaria,
- Croatia,
- Cyprus,
- Czech Republic,
- Denmark,
- Estonia,
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- Finland,
- France,
- Georgia,
- Germany,
- Greece,
- Greenland,
- Hungary,
- Iceland,
- Ireland,
- Italy,
- Kazakhstan,
- Kyrgyzstan,
- Latvia,
- Lithuania,
- Luxembourg,
- Malta,
- Moldova,
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- Netherlands,
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- Romania,
- Russia,
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- Switzerland,
- Tajikistan,
- Tatarstan,
- Turkey,
- Turkmenistan,
- Ukraine,
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