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
12 Sep 23 |
Poland: DNV wins contract to certify new Polish offshore wind farms Independent energy expert and assurance provider DNV has been awarded a contract by the Equinor and Polenergia owned joint ventures, MFW Baltyk II and MFW Baltyk III for the certification of the Baltyk II and Baltyk III offshore wind farms. The projects, located in the Polish exclusive economic zone of the Baltic Sea, are set to contribute significantly to Poland's renewable energy goals. |
06 Sep 23 |
Poland: Equinor expanding renewable portfolio in Poland Equinor has acquired a 26 MW onshore wind farm in Poland from the Helios Group. With this investment, Equinor expands its broad energy offering in Poland and delivers on its market-driven power producer strategy. |
10 Aug 23 |
Poland: Vestas signs conditional agreement for an up to 1.2 GW offshore project in Poland Vestas has entered into a conditional agreement to deliver wind turbines for the offshore wind power project Baltic Power in Poland with a capacity of up to 1.2 GW. |
20 Jul 23 |
Enphase Energy and BayWa r.e. expand distribution partnership in Poland Enphase Energy, a global energy technology company and the world's leading supplier of microinverter-based solar and battery systems, has expanded its global relationship with renewable energy company BayWa r.e., a leading global developer and solar photovoltaic (PV) distributor, to distribute Enphase’s family of IQ8 Microinverters in Poland |
03 Jul 23 |
Poland: Cadeler enters Polish offshore wind market with the installation of 76 Vestas 15MW wind turbines Cadeler has signed a firm contract with Baltic Power for the installation of 76 Vestas 15MW offshore wind turbines in the Polish Baltic Sea with a contract value of between 68-85 million EUR. The project will begin in 2024 and marks Cadeler’s entry into a new and expanding offshore market. |
Poland - more news
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