RWE announces more wind power for Poland

ESSEN , Germany, March 31 (UPI) -- German RWE Innogy announced it has secured contracts to several sites in the Masuria and Pomerania regions of Poland with a total capacity of 200 megawatts.

The firm also said in a statement it has signed a contract with a Polish project developer as well. The first permits are expected to be granted before the end of the year and the goal is to get the first wind power systems on stream in 2010.

In Poland, energy utilities have to provide 10.4 percent of energy consumption from renewable energy sources by the year 2010, and by 2020 the level is required to increase to at least 15 percent, an RWE spokesperson said.

Polish grid operators have calculated the country will need about 4,000 megawatts of wind power capacity to come online by 2010 in order to meet the country's goal. Only about 300 megawatts of wind power capacity are currently connected to the grid.

RWE has 280 megawatts invested in Poland and will likely continue its work there, said Fritz Vahrenholt, chief executive officer of RWE Innogy.