Akita power station
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Akita power station (秋田港発電所) is a cancelled power station in Akita, Tohoku, Japan. It is also known as Akita Port No. 2 (Unit 2), Akita Port No.1 (Unit 1).
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Akita power station | Akita, Tohoku, Japan | 39.718611, 140.1025 (approximate) |
The map below shows the approximate location of the power station.
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | cancelled | coal - unknown | 650 | ultra-supercritical | 2024 | – |
| Unit 2 | cancelled | coal - unknown | 650 | ultra-supercritical | 2024 | – |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner |
|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Kansai Electric Power Co (KEPCO), Marubeni Corp |
| Unit 2 | Kansai Electric Power Co (KEPCO), Marubeni Corp |
Background
In March 2015 Kansai Electric Power and Marubeni Corp. informed Akita prefecture of their plans to build a new 1,300 MW coal-fired power station in an industrial park on Akita's northern coast. Kansai Electric plans to use the Akita project to supply electricity to customers in Tokyo. Construction is slated to begin around 2019 and commercial operations around 2025.[1]
The EIA was submitted in September 2015.[2]
In November 2015 Japan’s environment minister Tamayo Marukawa said she won’t support the project, and that Japan should develop a plan to meet its stated goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 35 percent from 2013 levels by 2030.[3][4]
In September 2018 Kiko Network stated that the assessment process for both units was ongoing and that commissioning was scheduled for 2024.[5]
In December 2018 the plant received a positive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.[6]
In March 2019 it was reported that Marubeni Corporation told the Nikkei media company that it would not proceed with the proposed Akita coal plant. According to The Australian Financial Review, Marubeni has yet to formally announce the decision because it is still trying to convince its joint-venture development partner, Kansai Electric Power, to also abandon the project.[7]
In August 2019 a spokesman for Kansai Electric Power announced that construction would not begin in August 2019 as planned and that no new construction schedule had been set. "We have delayed construction of the power plant in Akita from August as was stated in our environmental impact assessment document and no new construction schedule has been set,” said Takahito Hirota, a spokesman at Kansai Electric.[8]
Reuters also reported that industry sources have stated that Kansai Electric and Marubeni have surrendered grid access rights for the project, which would indicate the project has been cancelled. Hirota declined to comment on whether grid access rights have been surrendered.[8] In April 2021 Kansai and Marubeni announced that the plant is cancelled, and they are exploring the possibility of building a biomass plant instead.[9]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ Mari Iwata, "Japan Continues to Re-Embrace Coal:Lack of nuclear energy prompts return to coal as other countries move away from ‘dirty’ fuel source," WSJ, March 12, 2015
- ↑ EIA, Honshu Province, 2015/09/25
- ↑ "Japan Minister Says She Won't Support 2 Coal Power Projects," Bloomberg, Nov 12, 2015
- ↑ "秋田港発電所（仮称）建設計画に係る計画段階環境配慮書に対する環境大臣意見の提出について（お知らせ）," Japan MEP, Nov 13, 2015
- ↑ Japan Coal Phase-Out, Kiko Network, November 2018
- ↑ 丸紅株式会社及び株式会社関電エネルギーソリューション「秋田港火力発電所（仮称）建設計画に係る環境影響評価書」に係る確定通知について, METI, Dec. 30, 2018
- ↑ "Power plant cancellations in Japan buoy anti-coal push," The Australian Financial Review, March 14, 2019
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Yuka Obayashi and Aaron Sheldrick, "Kansai Electric, Marubeni delay construction of coal-fired power plant", Reuters, August 15, 2019
- ↑ Kansai, Marubeni scrap Akita coal-fired power project, Argus Media, Apr. 27, 2021
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
