Ávarp Guðlaugs Þórs Þórðarsonar umhverfis-, orku- og loftslagsráðherra á opnum fundi um endurnýjanlega orku og hitaveitu

Ambassador, ladies and gentlemen,

It is a pleasure for me to welcome you to Iceland and address you, our visitors from Poland, at the start of your study visit, which is the projevct - Capacity Building of the Key Stakeholders in the Area of Geothermal Energy in Poland - based on cooperation between Orkustofnun in Iceland and Mineral and Energy Economic Research Institute Polish Academy of Science. The main focus of the study trip is on the optimal use of geothermal energy and district heating, but also on increasing renewables, energy security and mitigate climate change.

The subject of renewables and especially geothermal is something close to our heart in Iceland. Geothermal energy is quite visible on the surface in Iceland, especially in high temperature areas, whether it be hot springs or volcanic eruptions. Speaking of which, we have recently had a visual display of the power generated from the internal earth with the active volcanic eruption in the Reykjanes peninsula, just a few weeks ago. Less than an hour away from the capital, and even less from the airport you arrived in. In Iceland we have a constant reminder of the power dwelling below us. We should however bear in mind that while volcanos are an expression of geothermal energy, we certainly do not need volcanic activities as such to utilize geothermal energy in an efficient way. It does not have to be so dramatic as we find in Iceland…

In Iceland we are fortunate with our natural renewable energy resources. Our history of energy transition, moving away from imported fossil fuel to the use of domestic renewable resources, dates back more than a hundred years with the utilization of hydro-power. Our big push in the energy transition was in the 1970‘s when heating of houses with fossil fuel was, in a couple of decades, replaced with clean geothermal energy. The main focus was then on being independent from the imported oil by using our domestic resources, which had the advantage of being clean and less expensive than oil. The social and economic benefits of this development have been substantial. The macro economic benefits of the geothermal district heating systems in past many years is on averge annually about 2,4% of GDP in comparison to heting by oil. In addition to economic benefits we have also the environmental and climate benefits, raising the the quality of life substantially. The geothermal arena is also a prime example of circular industries and break-through innovation, where the waste from one company is a raw material for another company within green industrial resource parks.

Enough about Iceland.

As we are all very aware of, we are now in the midst of the converging crises of energy security and climate change. There is a severe energy crisis stemming from the war in Ukraine and the issue concerning climate change is far from being resolved. Notably, the key to amending both issues concerning energy security and the environment lie in renewable energy. The crisis has accelerated even more the drive for renewable energy development, for the purpose of enhanced energy security and fighting climate change.

Geothermal energy is a domestic renewable energy source and as such has a great role in energy security. It can provide an important factor in a secure energy supply and reduce the need to import non-renewable energy, and therefore increase energy independency.

We know as a fact that there are vast possibilities in Europe for geothermal utilization. Geothermal district heating has great potentials of replacing a significant part of EU’s demand for imported energy.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In past years, more projects and stronger relations have been constructed between Poland and Iceland in the field of geothermal energy, within the EEA Grants, for example based on cooperation between National Energy Authority in Iceland and MEERI PAS and Ministry of Climate and Environment in Poland, and other as well.

There are multiple benefits of the EEA Grant program. Projects funded by this programme are for example expected to reduce the annual carbon dioxide emissions in Poland by 600,000 tonnes, which will benefit not only Poland but also other countries across the borders. Several tenders for projects have been launched on the market, with opportunities for cooperation between Polish and Icelandic companies and municipalities.

Cooperation between Poland and Iceland has a long history in geothermal. In past years, at least 14 fellows from Poland have also studied at the United Nations University Geothermal Training Programme in Iceland many of whom were now leading experts in this field in Poland.

Dear guests,

There are great opportunities in the field of cooperation between Poland an Iceland in the field of renewable energy, environment, and climate and we see that cooperation between Poland and Iceland is growing and has potential to grow much further.

Thanks to all participants of the projects within the Mineral and Energy Economic Research Institute Polish Academy of Science and Orkustofnun in Iceland. In addition, also thanks to the Ministry of Climate and Environment in Poland for constructive cooperation in this field in past years.

I hope you enjoy your stay in Iceland the visits to the many companies and sites planned on your agenda. I hope it paves the way for successful geothermal projects with benefits for your home country of Poland.