More than EUR 20 billion in additional funds from the EU rebuilding fund will be earmarked for Poland. The European Commission has approved a new version of the Polish plan. The first funds earmarked for the energy transition may be paid out soon.

The revised National Reconstruction and Resilience Plan for Poland envisages total financing of EUR 59.8 billion, including EUR 34.5 billion in loans and EUR 25.3 billion in grants. The current version of the plan envisaged EUR 11.5 billion in loans and EUR 23.85 billion in grants.

Poland has submitted a revised version of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) in line with other EU member states. The justification for the higher amounts was usually inflation causing increased costs and disrupted supply chains.

Most of the amount by which the plan was increased was for the RePow-erEU goals of strengthening energy independence and green transformation. EUR 22.5 billion in loans and EUR 2.8 billion in grants are to be allocated to developing renewable energy and improving energy efficiency.

The plan also includes the fight against energy poverty and the development of zero-emission transport. Another objective is to retrain workers in green technologies. 46.6 % of the new plan’s funds are allocated to measures that support climate goals. A further 21.3 %. – for digitalisation.

The European Commission’s decision must now be approved by the Council. Following the Council’s decision and the signing of an agreement with the EC, so-called pre-financing will be activated, amounting to 20 % of the funds allocated to RePowerEU, i.e. PLN 5.1 billion.

The remaining amount covered by the KPO remains blocked. In order to request the disbursement of these funds, Poland will have to meet three key milestones. Two of these relate to the rule of law in the field of justice. The third, the implementation of the Arachne IT tool, which supports states in the fight against financial fraud.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński