A state of uncertainty surrounds the project to build a second nuclear power station in Poland, which increases the difficulties facing the government’s efforts to transition from using coal to generating electricity for homes and industries.

According to Dariusz Marzek, CEO of the Polish state electricity company PGE, the company will decide on an investment in nuclear energy within the next five years.

Marzek stressed that progress on the nuclear power plant construction project is currently facing delays, and a final decision will be made on the project based on the future government strategy.

Coal currently accounts for 80% of electricity production in Poland, a Central European country with the highest rates of premature deaths due to air pollution.

Warsaw seeks to reduce this percentage to 35% by the end of the current decade as part of a comprehensive energy transition plan.

Plans to expand nuclear power plants come within the framework of Poland’s attempts to enhance its renewable sources, such as solar energy and offshore wind plants, to dispense with fossil fuels by the middle of the current century.

Poland is working to build the first nuclear station in cooperation with Westinghouse Electric Co. Construction work is expected to begin in 2026, with the first reactor to be operated in 2033, which is part of a strategy to diversify energy sources and reduce its dependence on coal.