Anna Moskwa made the remark during an appearance before the Polish Senate on Thursday, state news agency PAP reported.
Moskwa said: “Coal is imported to Poland mainly by sea.” She added that it came mainly from Colombia and Indonesia, with individual shipments also arriving from the likes of Australia, South Africa and Tanzania.
She told the Polish upper house that, in a bid to further step up coal imports before the winter, the government was "additionally analysing the capacity of other ports on the Baltic Sea, especially Riga, Latvia, with a view to importing coal through them.”
Asked by senators about the option of using German ports, Moskwa said “they lack extra capacity.”
Plans for new floating storage regasification unit
Moskwa also briefed senators on plans for a new floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) near the northern Polish port of Gdańsk, the PAP news agency reported.
She said: “We have been planning to set up a FSRU terminal in 2027, with a capacity of 6 billion cubic metres of gas.”
Moskwa added: “The government has not yet decided on the exact capacity of the terminal, because domestic gas demand is falling. On the other hand, Slovakia and the Czech Republic have inquired about the planned terminal.”
She told senators: “We are holding discussions with Slovakia and the Czech Republic to develop a shared model for the terminal and then raise its capacity.”
Baltic Pipe poised for launch
Moskwa confirmed that Poland would in late September start using a new pipeline, the Baltic Pipe, which is designed to pump gas from Norway at an eventual capacity of 10 billion cubic metres per year.
“We have secured enough deliveries for this year and the next year, and the state gas company PGNiG is in talks with major partners about further contracts,” she said.
Her remarks came as Europe grapples with an energy crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Thursday was day 162 of Russia's war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, polskieradio24.pl