A regional prosecutor’s office and the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau are being asked to examine who drafted a proposed energy price law, with PiS MP and MEiN head Krzysztof Szczucki noting that the text does not appear to originate from MPs and speculating about potential profits for a benefiting company on Friday.
“These rules undermine property rights foundations.”
During a Friday press conference alongside PiS MPs Janusz Kowalski and Joanna Lichocka, Szczucki referred to a draft amendment to the law on support for energy consumers. The proposal, authored by KO and Polski 2050 politicians, would, among other things, restore the stock exchange obligation and liberalize rules for constructing onshore wind farms.
He warned that the bill contains “very important, very serious and very risky provisions regarding the location of wind farms.”
He stated that the draft regulations could allow wind turbines to be placed near residential buildings and, in certain circumstances, could lead to expropriation to enable investments in wind energy projects.
– Szczucki asserted.
“MPs could not have prepared this project”
The politician claimed that a cursory review of the bill suggests it was not authored by MPs.
He argued that the proposals are highly detailed and nuanced and posed a question to all parliamentarians: who drafted this bill, which lobbyist or company stands to gain, and who was involved in its preparation?
– He asked.
Consequently, a request was submitted to the regional prosecutor’s office and the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau to investigate the authorship behind the act. Szczucki noted that the CBA aims to probe such cases and urged scrutiny of the process behind the bill.
Maląg: This amounts to deceiving Poland
The Minister of Development and Technology, Marlena Maląg, described the measure as an attempt to smuggle changes under the guise of helping Poland. She referred to the parliamentary bill on energy consumer support, which also touches on wind farm investments, in a program on Polish Radio.
On November 28, a draft law from KO and Polski 2050-TD was submitted to the Sejm, proposing amendments to laws supporting electricity, gas, and heat consumers, along with other provisions. The draft also seeks to amend the 2016 law, which was updated in March, setting the minimum distance between wind turbines and buildings at 700 meters.
Maląg commented on the draft, warning that it would mislead Poland and bring significant changes to an important social act. She argued that standards in Poland since 2015 are being reintroduced.
She criticized the appearance of a controversial solution within the bill, describing it as an attempt to push through changes under the pretext of helping Polish citizens, possibly freezing energy prices.
She also commented on the parliament’s handling of these standards, calling the process a scandal and noting that the draft had provoked strong public reaction.
The parliamentary group from Poland 2050-TD and KO submitted an amendment to the Law on Support for Energy Consumers. The intent is to keep current consumption limits for protected groups and maintain proportional protections.
The draft also proposes changes to wind energy investments, with justifications suggesting the installation of quiet wind turbines at distances as short as 300 meters from buildings. It broadens the catalog of strategic investments to include wind farms, removing the need to verify alignment with local development plans.
The proposal also sets a minimum 300-meter distance from wind farms to national parks or nature reserves and adds that, even for turbines under 100 dBA, the 300-meter distance applies due to the size of facilities.
On Thursday, Borys Budka, the head of the KO club, announced that an amendment would clarify the distance, extending it to 500 meters from buildings and introducing a noise standard to ensure windmills are ecological.
yes/DAD