Corporate Green Energy Purchase Agreements (cPPAs) are becoming increasingly popular. These are contracts concluded by electricity consumers directly with a RES producer. Last year, a record number of such contracts was recorded. 51 were signed in Europe, and the total capacity of the energy contracted in this way has already reached nearly 4 GW. This is an increase of 60% compared to the previous year.
In Poland, however, it is not a frequently used solution. So far, 11 cPPA contracts have been publicly announced in our country, four of which will be in 2021. As a result, more contracts have been signed in the four months of this year than in the entire 2020. The total amount of energy contracted on the domestic market is 404.5 MW of which 65% relates to wind farms and the rest to solar farms.
Companies choose this solution mainly due to rising energy prices on the wholesale market driven by the gigantic increase in prices of CO2 emission allowances. Today, wind energy is the cheapest option available on the market, but the prices on the market are dedicated to coal-fired power plants, because in Poland about 70% of electricity is produced from it.
Polish entrepreneurs face many barriers on their way. As noted by Karolina Wcisło-Karczewska, a lawyer from Brysiewicz, Bokina, Sakławski i Wspólnicy, one of them is concluding contracts with a direct supplier of energy from RES installations, i.e. bypassing the national distribution network and without paying distribution fees. Other barriers include unstable legislation or the lack of a long-term energy price policy.
The Polish Wind Energy Association has been calling for the lifting of barriers for a long time. This year, it started talks with Towarowa Giełda Energii about the implementation of exchange instruments supporting the development of cPPA agreements. The association is looking for the best solutions for the market and also analyzes whether it is possible to offer other services promoting the development of the renewable energy sector.