Construction commences on Poland’s first offshore wind farm

After months of preparation, a fleet of 11 specialised vessels has mobilised to begin installing the foundations for Poland’s first offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea.

This stage has already seen the successful installation of the first two of a total of 78 100-metre-tall steel monopiles that will support 15 MW wind turbines.

With a total capacity of 1.2 GW, the Baltic Power wind farm is set to commence operations in 2026, delivering electricity capable of powering over 1.5 million households.

As part of its new strategy, Baltic Power's operator, the Orlen Group, has also committed to developing three additional offshore wind farms, for which it has already secured licences.

"Together with large-scale energy storage, onshore renewables, gas-fired power plants, and small modular reactors, offshore wind will be a cornerstone of Poland’s energy transition," said Orlen.

The Baltic Power offshore construction site covers approximately 130 km². Within this zone, 78 hugely resource-intensive and environmentally damaging monopiles, each extraordinarily difficult to remove at the end of a windmill's useful life, are being driven into the seabed at depths of around 40 metres using a floating installation crane.

Beyond the crane vessel, more than ten specialised ships are actively engaged in construction, including support vessels, tugs, personnel and equipment carriers, environmental monitoring vessels, and security patrol vessels.

As construction progresses, transition pieces will be installed to connect the foundations with the turbines, followed by the assembly of wind turbines, offshore substations, inter-array cables linking the turbines, and export cables transmitting electricity to shore. The installation stage is scheduled to continue until 2026.