Poland must accept a penalty payment in the tens of millions in the dispute over the Turow mine, according to a ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union. The EU Commission was allowed to offset the penalty payment against Polish claims, the judges in Luxembourg ruled, confirming a decision at first instance. An agreement between Poland and the Czech Republic meant that the obligation to pay could not be waived. The amount collected in the main claim amounts to 68.5 million euros.
The background to this is a long conflict over lignite mining in the border triangle with Germany and the Czech Republic, just a few kilometers from Zittau in Saxony. Poland wanted to expand mining in the Turow open-cast mine. Critics feared a further lowering of the groundwater level and damage to buildings.
In 2021, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ordered a halt to lignite mining following a complaint from the Czech Republic. However, Poland did not comply. The Court therefore imposed a fine of 500,000 euros per day that Poland did not comply with the decision. The money was to flow into the common EU budget.
