Wednesday 9 November 2016
Government consults on unabated coal phase out
The UK Government is seeking views on proposals to put into effect the closure of unabated coal-fired power stations by 2025.
It has launched a consultation to test its plans for a constraint on coal generation in the years ahead of that “to manage closures in an orderly way”.
The announcement to take unabated coal out of the energy mix within the next decade was initially made last November as the UK aims to move towards a low carbon economy.
Coal is the most carbon intensive fossil and produces twice the Carbon Dioxide per unit of electricity as natural gas.
Last year it accounted for just under a quarter of power production and the eight plants that remain operational today represent around 15% of Britain’s total generating capacity.
The remaining coal power stations are ageing and are relatively inefficient and require costly modifications to comply with air quality standards. As a result, many have closed in recent years.
BEIS states: “This consultation explores how to take action to regulate the closure of unabated coal to provide greater market certainty for investors in the generation capacity that is to replace coal stations as they close such as new gas generators."
The consultation ends on 1st February 2017.
The government has also outlined plans for £580 million of funding for its Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme.
