For centuries, mankind's primary source of energy has been biomass, particularly firewood. It provided heat in homes, was used for cooking and powered basic craft processes. The breakthrough came with the industrial revolution in the 18th century, which radically increased the need for energy. Coal becomes a key raw material, enabling the rapid development of industry and the industrialisation of countries with coal deposits. Thanks to the invention and spread of steam engines and blast furnaces, production reaches a previously unprecedented scale.
On Polish soil, the industrial revolution takes place with some delay. While in England the first gasworks was established as early as the 18th century, and London was illuminated by gas lamps in 1807, cities such as Krakow and Warsaw still had to wait several decades for similar facilities. Poland, however, has a golden record in the history of energy as the cradle of the oil industry. In 1853, the world's first surgical operation under artificial light was performed in Lviv, by the light of an oil lamp constructed by Ignacy Łukasiewicz. Just one year later, the world's first oil mine was established in Bóbrka, ushering in a new era in the history of energy production.
With establishment of the first gas plants on the Polish lands, a rapid development of the gas engineering begins. Similar plants are established in other cities, municipal gas transmission networks are being intensely developed. End 19th century, gas is already used not only to light streets and houses, but also for heating and cooking purposes. Before the outbreak of WWI, there are 122 gas plants in operation in the territories soon to make the revived Poland.
Simultaneously, the Polish people are using paraffin lamps more and more, lamps that require no gas network connection. Poland becomes one of the pioneers of crude oil drilling, and the oil-rich Podkarpacie region becomes an oil power on a global scale. This is where many foreigners come to extend their distillation and drilling knowledge and skills. Before the outbreak of WWI, in the territories of the Second Polish Republic to be, two new branches of energy sector come to exist – one based on electricity and the other powered by natural gas.
During the interwar period, the energy sector in Poland relied primarily on traditional sources such as hard coal and gas. Coal, which at the time accounted for approximately 50% of the global energy balance, remained the main fuel used in both industry and households. It was accompanied by gas—both coal gas, obtained through coal processing, and natural gas, which gradually gained importance, especially in areas near the oil basin.
Crude oil also began to play an increasingly important role, particularly due to the growing popularity of the internal combustion engine—a late 19th-century invention—and the rapid development of automobile transportation. As a country with a long tradition in the oil industry, Poland benefited significantly from these changes by expanding its oil extraction and refining operations.
The electricity sector was also developing rapidly. Although the first power plants in Warsaw and Kraków were built at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, their expansion accelerated only after Poland regained independence. By 1918, there were around 280 power plants operating within the newly reestablished Polish borders, with a total capacity of 210 MW and an annual production of approximately 500 GWh. Over the next two decades, these numbers increased significantly—to 3,198 power plants with a combined capacity of 1,668 MW, generating 3,974 GWh of electricity annually.
Despite this dynamic growth, the country's energy system remained fragmented. Power plants operated independently of one another, as there was no nationwide transmission network to integrate electricity production and distribution on a national scale. This limitation would become a significant challenge for future generations of energy engineers.
After the end of World War II, the People's Republic of Poland—like the entire Eastern Bloc under Soviet control—underwent a period of intense and forced industrialization. As a result, energy consumption grew rapidly. Due to Poland’s domestic natural resources, the country's energy sector was primarily based on hard coal and lignite. The share of hydrocarbon fuels, such as crude oil and natural gas, remained relatively low compared to other countries.
In the 1950s and 1960s, widespread electrification of the country took place, largely based on coal combustion. During this time, a nationwide power grid was established, integrating the generation and transmission of electricity across the country.
Gradually, coal gas was phased out, replaced by more efficient energy sources. Electric lighting became increasingly common, and natural gas began to be used for heating and cooking. The last coal gas production plants in Poland operated until the 1970s and 1980s.
The centrally planned economy, subordinate to the interests of the Soviet Union, led to the development of energy-intensive industries that ignored the real costs of energy consumption—often artificially lowered. This resulted in widespread inefficiency, resource waste, and a destructive energy policy that caused significant environmental degradation.
Social and economic changes that took place in Poland after the fall of communism, as well as environmental and climate factors, lead to fundamental changes in the Polish energy sector. For 30 years now, share of coal in Polish energy balance has kept falling, on the other hand, hydrocarbon fuels have gained more and more importance. Also, in the last decade, renewable energy consumption (wind, water and solar) has increased.
While Poland has relatively large hard and brown coal resources, on the other hand, its hydrocarbon fuel resources are insufficient. Therefore it is essential to import natural gas and crude oil – to ensure Poland’s energy security by means of diversification of supplies. This has become of a particular importance in a situation of Russia’s aggressive gas blackmail. An example of that was the conflict with the Ukraine in 2009. To diversify supplies, an LNG terminal of Świnoujście was commissioned in 2015. Also, a Baltic Pipe is in construction, to connect Poland with gas deposits in the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Moreover, a nuclear power energy program has been resumed. It is planned that the first block of this type in Poland will have been built by 2033.