Poland Prefers Nuclear Power Over Gas as Main Energy Source in Future - Official

WARSAW (Sputnik) - Poland views natural gas as a "regulating" fuel, relying on the nuclear power industry in its future electricity production, Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the Polish Prime Minister, Government Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure Piotr Naimski, said on Friday.

"Gas will be used in the future as a regulating element, we will not sharply convert the Polish energy sector to gas," he stressed.

As the Energy Ministry revealed earlier in the day, it expects to build a new nuclear reactor every two years, bringing the power plant's total capacity to 6-9 gigawatts.

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This will allow the Eastern European country to cut the share of coal in the electricity production from 80 percent to 60 percent in 12 years and further to 30 percent by 2040. Though the government does not plan to use windmills and will instead opt for solar power.

Although gas was a source of CO2 emissions, the lack of own sources does not allow to cover rapid growth of energy consumption, the official noted. Poland's electricity production is currently 80-percent coal-powered.

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