More than 100 plants, equivalent to one-third of Europe’s large-scale coal-fired power plant capacity, face costly air quality upgrades or closure as a result of new European Union emissions limits, according to an analysis published Monday by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
'These regulations will further undermine and in many cases shatter the fragile economics of coal generation across the EU compared with gas and renewables,' according to Gerard Wynn, a London-based IEEFA energy finance consultant and co-author of the report.
The IEEFA analysis identified the biggest polluters, or the 'low hanging fruit' - the plants that will face the costliest retrofit investments. These are a total of 108 plants with a combined 187 gigawatts of thermal capacity.
The new standards known as 'Best Available Techniques Reference (BREF) are to be implemented by 2021,' the analysis noted.
BREF refers to the techniques that large combustion plants must use to improve their efficiency and cut emissions of toxic pollutants under the European Union's Industrial Emissions Directive.
The cost of compliance will be prohibitive for many of these installations, given the market outlook and other headwinds, according to Wynn.
'Owners will either have to make significant investment and technical changes in just four years, or decide to close the plants altogether or significantly restrict their operating hours. Whichever way they turn, additional cost is unavoidable,' he warned.
By Ebru Sengul
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr