Bełchatów hosted an extraordinary session of the Łódź Voivodeship Assembly focused on the region’s energy future. The meeting brought together government, local authorities, PGE leadership, academia and the local community (around 180 participants) and concluded with a declaration supporting a nuclear power plant in Bełchatów.
Speakers highlighted the region’s grid and industrial advantages. Marcin Laskowski (PGE) pointed to the existing transmission backbone, noting Bełchatów’s major substations and “excellent conditions for power evacuation” (Rogowiec and Trębaczew).
Jacek Kaczorowski (PGE GiEK) framed the pathway as a continuity-based transition: moving from lignite—responsibly used to the end of its resource base—to a new, stable generation source.
He also emphasized the region’s human capital and the need to protect jobs and know-how built over generations.
A key contribution came from Prof. Łukasz Bartela (Silesian University of Technology), who leads the DEsire team—Repower Initiative’s partner in Poland—sharing international examples where nuclear investment triggered long-term regional development.
This aligns with the Coal-to-Nuclear approach that Repower Initiative has been advancing since 2019, together with Prof. Bartela and the DEsire team: repurposing coal-region infrastructure and skills, protecting jobs, and accelerating decarbonisation while maintaining system reliability.