The European Commission has given a positive assessment of Poland’s latest request for a payment from the National Recovery Plan (KPO) amounting to €7.9 billion, or approximately PLN 33 billion. This does not yet mean that the funds will be transferred. The preliminary assessment has been forwarded to the Economic and Financial Committee, which has four weeks to issue its opinion. Once the procedure is complete, the total amount of funds transferred to Poland is set to rise to €42.05 billion, representing 76.85 per cent of the total National Recovery Plan (KPO) allocation.
The decision is underpinned by both investments and reforms. Over 500,000 teachers have received vouchers for laptops, and over 16,500 schools have been equipped with digital equipment. Eighty-eight trams have also been purchased for Kraków, Poznań and Wrocław. Poland has adopted a law on space activities and amended the Energy Act, introducing uniform rules for grid connections and an obligation to publish available capacity.
The energy component of the package may be particularly significant for the technology sector. Greater transparency regarding grid connections could facilitate the planning of investments in renewable energy sources, data centres and other energy-intensive infrastructure. The digitisation of schools, in turn, addresses a broader issue: the Commission points out that Poland still has shortcomings in basic digital skills and in the use of key technologies by businesses.
The National Recovery Plan (KPO) also remains an important boost to the economy. The Commission forecasts a 3.5 per cent increase in Polish GDP in 2026 and highlights the high uptake of EU funds as one of the drivers of investment. Time, however, is a risk. Milestones must be achieved by 31 August, and the final applications must be submitted by the end of September. With around 72 per cent of the targets met, the final phase of the National Recovery Plan will therefore primarily be a test of the ability to complete investments on time.
