8 Responsible development

We fully analyse the impact of our investment projects on the local community

Designers must also select the type of tower design, phase wires, insulators and other line elements for a preliminary line engineering proposal. Usually, at this stage it cannot yet be decided what engineering solutions will be finally deployed.

The formula of the information and consultation process provides for the possibility of looking for compromise solutions that reflect, as far as possible, the interests of the parties interested in the location of a power line. Such interests may be in conflict with each other and therefore involvement and participation of all parties is necessary, along with ensuring their real influence on the solutions developed.

Implementing power projects, we have a common objective

GRI 103 To maintain operational stability of the power system, it is necessary to ensure constant technological development and set directions to be followed in the near and more remote future.

Issues of sustainable development, environmental protection and optimal management of national energy resources are becoming increasingly important. In this context, alternative energy generation sources have gained significance. The Act on renewable energy sources (Journal of Laws of 2015, item 478, Article 2(22)) defines them as: “renewable non-fossil sources of energy, including wind, solar, aerothermal, geothermal, hydrothermal, hydropower, wave, current and tidal energy, energy obtained from biomass, biogas, agricultural biogas and biofluids.”

GRI 103 The recent years have seen a gradual increase of installed capacity of renewable sources. As at the end of 2016, RES installed capacity in the Polish Power System increased by 13 percent from 2015 and reached 8 GW.

Installed electrical capacity in 2015-2016

(Source: ARE S.A.)

Increasing the share of energy generation from renewable sources is one of the main aspects of the European Union's policy. Further development of those sources in Poland will largely depend on investors being able to use support mechanisms. The basic piece of legislation governing RES-related issues is the Act of 20 February 2015 on renewable energy sources (Journal of Laws item 478), as amended. The Act modified the existing green certificate system and introduced a mechanism based on organising energy sale auctions. Renewable sources will be built in case it is possible to use the above-mentioned mechanism. The evaluation of capacity increase in the segment will take into account the provisions of applicable laws and regulations.

The development of new technologies has a significant impact on energy security issues. Therefore, we carry on many activities aimed to make an optimum use of new technologies in the power sector. They concern, among other things, the issue of digitisation of substation facilities and the use of low-loss wires in transmission lines, Wide Area Measurement Systems (WAMS), Demand Side Management and Demand Side Response (DSM/DSR) and solutions supporting the popularisation of local generating sources and energy storage facilities.

In 2016, we carried out 29 innovation, research and development projects, 10 of which were completed.

to improve operational security of the power system with an increasing share of renewable energy sources

In response to an increase in the share of renewable sources connected to the Polish Power System (PPS), on 14 March 2017, the Japanese governmental organisation NEDO and the Ministry of Energy signed a Memorandum of Understanding for a power system security project.

The objective of the project is to test, within a dedicated PPS area, a load shedding system (SPS) and a hybrid electrical energy storage system (BESS). The solution proposed under the project uses the Japanese automatic protection system technology and hybrid electrical energy storage (BESS).

In order execute the project, on 17 March 2017 Hitachi and Hitachi Chemical signed an implementation agreement with PSE, Energa-Operator (EOP) and Energa Wytwarzanie (EW). The next step was the signing of an agreement by Hitachi, Hitachi Chemical and SMBC with NEDO.

The decision to deliver the project for the next three and a half years was taken on the basis of results of the feasibility study performed between February 2915 and November 2016 by Hitachi, Hitachi Chemical, SMBC and other institutions engaged in the project. Under the project, Hitachi, working with PSE, EIP and EW, will deploy the SPS, whereas Hitachi Chemical will be responsible for building a hybrid electrical energy storage equipped with lithium ion and acid lead batteries. In addition, Hitachi, Hitachi Chemical and SMBC will examine business models for automatic load shedding systems and energy storage systems.

As a Member State of the European Union, Poland is planning to increase the share of RES in the power system. In order to meet the challenges of increased network loading, it is necessary to taken measures aimed at its upgrading and expansion. They can be complemented the implementation of a system that performs the automatic load shedding function (SPS), adjusted to appropriate management of substantial generation from renewable sources, in particular wind energy.

Simplified architecture of the SPS and BES solution

Simplified chart of allocation of responsibilities
between the project parties

Under the project "Modern low-loss wires for electricity transmission over EHV power lines" complete with technical specifications, we have developed a new design of phase wires.

It is a system solution for the transmission of electricity in the form of a three or four-wire bundle with the use of new-generation low-loss wires that allow electricity transmission losses to be additionally reduced.

Our work has resulted in a new design of the phase wire in a three-wire bundle designed for use in new-build 400 kV lines.

The new wire, designated as 468/24-A1F/UHST-261, is a low-loss substitute for the 408-AL1F/34-UHST wire used currently and allows losses to be reduced to 13 percent. Compared to the traditional AFL-8 350 wire, used until 2013, it allows losses to be reduced to 26.1 percent.

The wires will be used for the construction of our new 400 kV power lines.

Percentage of new suppliers who have been subjected to assessment according to environmental criteria

GRI 103, GRI 308-1 Contractors for investment projects performed under the Investment Plan 2016 were random checked by the Contract Engineer for compliance with environmental requirements on construction sites. For this reason, we do not have sufficient data for a reliable calculation of the rate. The Working Environment Management Office at PSE started keeping a database of environmental inspection reports for project in progress in order to report full data for the 2017 rate.

In the year under review, contractors performing repair and maintenance tasks were not evaluated under environmental criteria. 

HESQ criteria for subcontractors

GRI 103 One of the new elements of PSE's policy is the introduction of integrated measures in the field of HSEQ (health, safety, environment and quality).

Our activities are aimed at ensuring a secure working environment and protection of the natural environment. They concern not only PSE's employees but also our contractors and subcontractors for new-build and upgrade works. We implement HSEQ principles in the area of network infrastructure maintenance and development.

For third-party contractors, we have defined an action programme which is aimed mainly to prevent real events such as failures and accidents involving people, equipment and the environment. The basic tools used in this respect are the identification of near misses and close supervision of the progress of work contracted out to third parties.

Our employees analyse the preparedness of subcontractors to correct work performance, including on the basis of statistics such as accident and near-miss rates for the period of the last three years. The following are taken into account: the number of light, collective, serious and fatal accidents, as well as accident prevalence and prevention rates.

Compensation based on the example of the 400 kV Miłosna – Siedlce Ujrzanów line

In the course of work related to the construction of the 400 kV Miłosna-Siedlce Ujrzanów line, the contractor removed trees and shrubs in a total area of 50 ha. In accordance with the decision on environmental conditions for the construction of the line, we were obliged to provide environmental compensation by planting a number of trees and shrubs 10% greater than the total damage and to monitor the condition of plantings for another 5 years.

In order to meet our obligations we planted vegetation aimed to restore damaged tree stock in an area of 58.9 ha. As part of compensation work, 350,140 seedlings of the following species were planted.

We carried out the work using recommended tree species and based on the neighbouring tree stand, on land with low suitability for agriculture (91.5 percent of plantings) and on forest land (8.5 percent of plantings).

Having performed inspections, in 2015 and 2016 we carried out supplementary planting in place of seedlings damaged by animals. Two years later, the area of plantings increased to 118 percent of the total clearance area.

Checks of plantings for the 400 kV Miłosna-Siedlce Ujrzanów line will be carried out each year until 2019.

Bat monitoring based on the example of the 400 kV Ełk-Łomża line

In 2016, we performed an as-built bat survey aimed to determine the species composition and activities of bats along the new line a year after its commissioning.

The surveys were conducted on the basis of the guidelines contained in the Environmental Impact Assessment Report. For comparison with the results presented in the report, the same survey methodology was adopted.

Bat activity was checked with detectors with the use of listening techniques at times of the most intensive preying (most numerous flights). The surveys were carried out at 45 locations, including the Special Protection Area Przełomowa Dolina Narwi, where lines run across areas of high natural value. Data gathered through detector monitoring has been analysed for voice-based classification of species. An as-built survey showed the presence of 4 bat species:

• serotine bat,
• common noctule,
• Daubenton's bat,
• northern bat.

Both the pre-investment survey (2013) and the as-built survey (2016) showed the same species composition of bats. A comparison of the average activity of animals showed an increase in activity in 2016. The result shows that the investment had no negative impact on species composition or bat activity. The survey also included a check of bat mortality. No dead animals were found in any of the line sections surveyed. The lack of bat mortality resulting from collision with a line, on the one hand, confirms bats' ability to bypass terrain obstacles such as a wire of more than 1 mm in diameter (EHV line wire diameters are many times greater), and, on the other hand, it confirms that neither the wires nor pylon structures pose a threat to those mammals.

Post-implementation avian monitoring based on the example of the 400 kV Miłosna – Siedlce Ujrzanów line

In 2015-2016, in accordance with the requirements of the decision on environmental conditions for the 400 kV Miłosna-Siedlce Ujrzanów line, we performed Stage I of post-implementation monitoring involving the detection of line collision victims. The survey covered 10.6 percent of the built 90 km of the line, including 25 line spans situated at the most critical locations for birds – areas of river valleys with more diversified bird species, used also as natural migration corridors during the spring and autumn passage periods, including those situated partly in the Natura 2000 site Kostrzyń Valley.

The monitoring included checks of selected sections aimed to detect dead birds or their traces, plot collision locations on maps, identify species, age of individuals, and corpse condition. The results of the work showed that the most numerous species subject to collisions were the song thrush and the blackcap. No birds were found during the surveys, electrocuted when siting on pylons.

Standards and regulations relating to grid assets

GRI 103, GRI 413-2 The impact of our company's operations on the social and natural environment is of particular significance in the case of new overhead line projects. The projects are implemented under the latest European standards PN-EN 50341 on designing overhead power lines. We respect all legal acts applicable in Poland in the fields of environmental protection, spatial planning and management, property management, construction law, etc.

European standards applied in designing and building new lines ensure a high level of operational dependability of lines, a high level of public security, and minimise line impact on the environment. In order to limit tree clearance in forest areas, we follow the practice of running line wires over the forest, owing to which tree clearance can be limited to small areas, to accommodate pylon stations.

For the construction of any line, it is necessary to obtain a decision on environmental conditions, according to which wires or pylons are marked with features visible to birds (representations of predatory birds on lighting arresters or diverter spirals suspended from wires). In compliance with the applicable law, lines are also marked as aviation obstructions.

Devices, instruments and systems installed at substations also meet the requirements of the European standards, which ensures a high level of their operational dependability. Solutions are also used which reduce the environmental impact of an electrical substation, including the natural environment – e.g. each network transformer installed is equipped with an oil tray preventing oil spillage into the environment in the event of failure.

Establishment of rights to real property

In order to regulate legal relations concerning transmission facilities between transmission undertakings and property owners on whose land such facilities are situated, the term "transmission rights of way" was introduced in the Civil Code in 2008. It defines the extent to which a transmission undertaking can use third-party property on which their transmission equipment is or will be situated, i.e. any structures and facilities forming power lines. The provisions adopted provide the investor with access to facilities, i.e. pylons, wires and substation elements situated on the property in cases of failure, repair and maintenance. .

Transmission rights of way are limited property rights established on a real property in the form of notarial deed. Its scope is recorded in the land and mortgage register of the encumbered property.

According to the applicable law, remuneration and compensation for property value diminution resulting from the establishment of transmission rights of way is paid to each property owner.

Prior to the commencement of work, we have property appraisal reports prepared for property to be developed. They provide a basis for the determination of the amount of remuneration and compensation for the plot owner. The payment amount is influenced by factors such as the existing value and use of the property and damage to agricultural land, sown or gathered crops, caused by a part of property being occupied by transmission facilities. Additional compensation is payable for pylon placement. Owner usually receive the first compensation instalment after the civil-law agreement is accepted and concluded. The second instalment is paid after the signing of the notarial deed that provides the investor with access to the land and line. Compensations are also awarded for damage and losses caused in the course of construction and erection works.

In the absence of the land owner's consent to sign the public utility project rights of way agreement, following the completion of the entire negotiation process, a negotiation process is triggered in accordance with the requirements of Article 124 of the Property Management Act (PMA). However, the administrative procedure is a last resort in the negotiation process – effort are made prior to its application, aimed at finding a compromise solution.

We do not keep statistics of the number of transmission rights of way agreements concluded with property owners by contractors acting on our behalf. This concerns thousands of plots every year. We estimate the percentage of agreements concluded at 94-98 percent, while the remaining 2 to 6 percent are administrative decisions issued under Article 124 of the PMA.

Number of people physically or economically displaced and compensation for displacement

GRI EU22 We make all efforts to avoid displacement in consequence of project implementation. In 2016, no case was reported of necessary displacement due to the construction of substations and transmission lines. An overarching objective of the projects is to satisfy the current and future needs of society, enterprises and individual consumers. To achieve it, joint efforts are necessary of all interested parties.

Line impact

All electrical equipment generates an electromagnetic field around it, which is results from the presence of voltage and current flow. Extra-high voltage lines belong to this group of equipment. Low-frequency (50 Hz) electromagnetic field is created around the line, of the same type as that generated by a vacuum cleaner or electrical appliances used in every home. The impact of electromagnetic fields is a common subject of discussions on the potential impact on human health.

The results of surveys carried out so far around the world do not confirm concerns about the negative impact of low-frequency electromagnetic fields on human health and other living organisms, nor do they exclude such impact. It is exactly for this reason that that Poland and the whole of the European Union have adopted relevant laws and regulations specifying, with a large safety margin, the acceptable values of impact of power facilities. They are stringently observed by our company. Prior to putting a facility into service, electromagnetic field measurements are performed, which are then subjected to verification by environmental protection bodies, which eliminates the risk of non-compliance. Interested readers are referred to the World Health Organisation (WHO) publication “Environmental Health Criteria No 238 - Extremely Low Frequency Fields”, Geneva, Switzerland, 2007).

For each investment project performed, we prepare information guides addressed to local communities, which contain reliable information on the investment concerned, including its environmental impact. The impact of electromagnetic fields is always one of the subjects of a programme of regional conferences organised by our contractors in cooperation with us.

Noise

The emitted noise level depends on the power line design and on weather conditions (it is much higher during drizzle and rain, which is beyond our control). Noise coming from newly designed lines outside the rights of way does not exceed environmental limits.

The main noise sources at our substations are transformers. We use equipment with a reduced sound power level and advanced cooling solutions. In special cases, noise screens are erected to suppress noise.

Landscape values

By assumption, we avoid running power lines across areas of special landscape value. However, the problem of a power line view, even a distant one, from a window is one of the main causes of social protests. Form each project, we aim to integrate the line into the landscape so as to minimise any negative aesthetic effect.

Electric shock or lightning stroke

Our extra-high voltage lines are fitted with ground wires. This means that the risk of lightning stroke in their vicinity is reduced. However, elementary caution is always required to be maintained near a line – in particular when performing work with the use of farming equipment.

Failure removal

Owing to a lack of legal norms governing transmission rights of way for power lines built in previous years, sometimes problems arise on privately-owned land, as repair teams' access to properties concerned is hindered or prevented. Hindering access to a site extends the time to remedy a failure or perform a repair, which causes problems, especially for the local electricity consumers.

Number of project-related meetings and events

GRI 103, GRI 203-1, GRI 203-2 Public purpose infrastructure investments, including the construction of electrical substations and EHV lines, significantly contribute to the improvement of living standards throughout the region. They perform a number of functions which are important from the point of view of the region and local communities.

Benefits of power investments:

• increasing the investment attractiveness of the region,
• ensuring better access to electricity by eliminating power consumption constraints,
• significant budgetary revenue from taxes paid to communes – each year, a commune receives tax revenue of 2 percent of the value of the investment implemented in its territory,
• growth of local business – employing local companies as subcontractors, services to contractors,
• creating new jobs.

GRI 203-1 Areas related to power engineering and our activities as transmission system operator are highly important from the point of view of the economy and electricity consumers. At the same time, they are complicated and often incomprehensible to final consumers. Addressing this challenge, PSE has carried out educational actions for primary and lower secondary school pupils, as well as a series of workshops for journalists dealing with the power sector.

Educational actions

PSE's investments are accompanied by educational actions targeted at children and school youth, and thereby at local communities. The activities help to build knowledge of power engineering and energy security, and to alleviate investment-related concerns. In 2016, PSE held several educational actions which yielded measurable outcomes.

The workshops for journalists perfectly fell in line with the assumptions of the SMART PSE programme. Understanding and satisfying the educational needs of an important group of shareholders, including media representatives, allowed us to improve cooperation with them, and to improve the targeting of the message on our activities addressed to the public opinion. They were conducted by representatives of the PSE management board and experts from the System Management Department and the Transmission Department.

Meetings with journalists allowed us not only share a rather hermetic and specialist knowledge, but also to better define the needs of media representatives. We are planning to continue our educational initiatives. What provides an additional stimulus in this respect are changes in the environment, continuous technological progress, as well as new solutions and mechanisms influencing the TSO's operation.