Poland pushes back debut of its first nuclear plants to 2036 and 2040

Poland has released its first nuclear strategy update in six years, shifting the expected start-up of the nation’s first nuclear power plant to 2036, three years later than the original schedule. The plant, a roughly 3.75 GW facility in Choczewo on the Baltic coast, will be built by a Westinghouse-Bechtel consortium and received state aid of 60.2 billion zloty approved by the European Commission. The second plant, planned for either Bełchatów or Konin, now aims for commercial operation around 2040, one year behind earlier projections, with technology bids from the United States, France and Canada.

The updated programme targets a combined capacity of 6-9 GW, representing about 15-16% of national electricity generation by 2040, and seeks to raise Polish industry participation from roughly 40% to as much as 70% in future units. In parallel, the government is supporting small modular reactor projects led by investors such as Michał Sołowow. Energy minister Miłosz Motyka emphasized that the strategy is intended to build a robust domestic nuclear sector that bolsters the economy and energy security.