PEJ applies for early works permit for nuclear power plant

Poland's state nuclear company, Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe (PEJ), has applied for a permit to begin early works on its first nuclear power plant at Lubiatowo-Kopalino. The site will host three Westinghouse AP1000 reactors. Early works include installing cooling-water pipelines beneath the Baltic seabed, building a retention basin, internal roads and tunnel boring machine launch pits. Poland amended its nuclear law in July 2026 to allow these preparatory activities before obtaining full regulatory approval, intended to accelerate delivery of what the energy minister called Poland's largest energy project in history.

Where this fits

Poland is moving at speed to deploy firm, dispatchable nuclear capacity before the 2030s, when weather-dependent renewables will dominate but cannot run the grid alone. This permit signals that Poland has chosen to front-load the regulatory and construction timeline rather than wait for renewables-only infrastructure to fail under load. The choice is explicit: firm power now, built into the planning, not bolted on later at panic cost and with gas as the interim bridge. Australia has taken the opposite path, legislating nuclear out while banking on renewable density to solve for wind lulls and solar night. Poland's legal reform removed a bottleneck; Australia's legal position created one.

What it means

Australia's energy security rests on a bet that renewable overbuild plus batteries plus imported dispatchable power (via interconnection or gas) will suffice. Poland is betting on nuclear, which it can own and operate on its own soil. The consequence is not merely cost or emissions. It is control. A grid that runs on panels, batteries and China's supply chain depends on both the weather and Beijing. A grid backed by nuclear does not.