Neurath power station
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Neurath power station is an operating power station of at least 2200-megawatts (MW) in Grevenbroich, Rhein-Kreis Neuss, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Grevenbroich-Neurath power station, Neurath BoA 2 (Unit F), Neurath BoA 3 (Unit G).
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Neurath power station | Grevenbroich, Rhein-Kreis Neuss, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany | 51.035808, 6.633038 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit A, Unit B, Unit C, Unit D, Unit E, Unit F, Unit G: 51.035808, 6.633038
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit A | retired | coal: lignite | 312 | unknown | 1972 | 2022 |
| Unit B | retired | coal: lignite | 312 | unknown | 1972 | 2021 |
| Unit C | retired[1] | coal: lignite | 312 | unknown | 1973 | 2024[1] |
| Unit D | retired[1] | coal: lignite | 644 | unknown | 1975 | 2024[1] |
| Unit E | retired[1] | coal: lignite | 644 | unknown | 1976 | 2024[1] |
| Unit F | operating | coal: lignite | 1100 | ultra-supercritical | 2012 | 2030 (planned) |
| Unit G | operating | coal: lignite | 1100 | ultra-supercritical | 2012 | 2030 (planned) |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit A | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit B | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit C | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit D | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit E | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit F | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
| Unit G | RWE Power AG [100%] | RWE AG [100.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Garzweiler and Hambach open pit mines, domestic
Background
The original plant consisted of three 312 MW units and two 644 MW units, commissioned from 1972-1976.[2]
Plans existed to retire Unit A of the plant in 2022.[3] Due to energy security concerns in light of the war in Ukraine, RWE considered mothballing the unit rather than formally retiring it.[4]
Unit A was retired in April 2022.[5]
In October 2022, it was announced that Unit D and Unit E would not be taken offline until March 31, 2024. This was a two year deferral from the original targeted retirement in 2022.[6] In the same month, the previously mothballed Unit C was brought back online. The unit would remain in operation until at least June 2023, with opportunity for extension.[7] All remaining units would be shuttered by 2030.[8]
In March 2024, Units C, D, and E were retired.[9]
Neurath BoA - Units F and G
RWE AG proposed adding two ultra-supercritical units at the plant - F and G, also known as BoA 2 and 3 - with an installed capacity of 2,200 megawatts (2 x 1,100).[10][11]
The project received its first emission permit in June 2005. Construction began in August 2006 and the plant entered operation in August 2012.[12] The investment was €2.6 billion.[2]
On the evening of October 25, 2007, there was a serious accident on the construction site. A side wall connected to scaffolding, weighing more than 100 tons, tore off and buried several workers. Three construction workers died while six others were taken to surrounding hospitals, some seriously injured. Almost 300 firefighters, police, medical organizations and technical aid organizations were on duty; RWE Power was not considered at fault for the accident.[13]
Coal supply
The nearby lignite coal fields that power the plant were first mined in 1858.[2] The lignite is delivered by rail from open pits in Rhenish lignite district, in particular from the Garzweiler and Hambach open pit mines.[14]
In October 2022, it was reported that an 8 turbine wind farm near the Garzweiler mine would be deconstructed in favor of expanding the mine. This move to expand mining and fossil fuel use was in opposition to North Rhine-Westphalia's claim that the German state would be coal-free by 2030.[15]
Pollution Concerns
In 2013, a study commissioned by Greenpeace, in collaboration with the University of Stuttgart, concluded that the fine dusts emitted by the Neurath coal-fired power plant (before units F and G were put into operation) and the secondary fine dusts formed by sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions led to 1,712 years of life lost, ranking 7th out of Germany's power plants. In absolute numbers, the CO2 emissions from the plant average around 31 million tonnes per year, as of 2016. Approximately 950 grams of carbon dioxide are emitted per kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is nearly twice as much as the average German electricity mix (494 grams of CO2/kWh). In 2011, the European Environment Agency estimated the annual costs of damage to the environment and health from the Neurath plant to be around 0.781-1.095 billion Euros.[13]
When approving the BoA plants (units F and G) in 2005, the Düsseldorf district government set the maximum emission limit values for mercury, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide from the new units to be below the applicable minimum requirements at the time.[13]
Citizen Action
In December 2005, after the BoA units were announced, 30 Greenpeace activists climbed onto a cooling tower at the site. A banner showing the words ‘CO2 Kills’ was dropped from the top of the cooling tower. The activists argued that lignite is a heavily polluting fuel, and Neurath uses conventional coal firing, rather than the cleaner and more efficient coal gasification with carbon dioxide scrubbing, to supply energy.[16]
In 2019, Greenpeace activists hosted a demonstration at the Neurath power station as part of the annual Ende Gelaande climate justice rally. They painted a 22-metre large "X" on the 100-metre tall cooling tower and rigged a banner underneath that read "Shutdown".[17]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 https://web.archive.org/web/20240417021244/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/energie-bonn-sieben-braunkohle-bloecke-stehen-vor-endgueltiger-stilllegung-dpa.urn-newsml-dpa-com-20090101-240324-99-447277. Archived from the original on 17 April 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Coal-Fired Plants in Nordrhein-Westfalen - N to W," Industcards, accessed April 2016
- ↑ "RWE boosts German decarbonization with exit from coal and nuclear power," Industry & Energy, January 5, 2022
- ↑ "RWE conserves unit A of the Neurath power plant," Energate Messenger, March 31, 2022
- ↑ "Mit Stilllegung von Block A des Kraftwerks Neurath setzt RWE den gesetzlichen Kohleausstieg planmäßig fort," RWE, March 31, 2022
- ↑ "Agreement on coal phase-out 2030 and strengthening security of supply in the energy crisis," RWE, October 4, 2022
- ↑ "RWE lignite units temporarily return to electricity market to strengthen security of supply and save gas in power generation," RWE, September 29, 2022
- ↑ "RWE brings forward coal phase-out to 2030," Energate Messenger, October 4, 2022
- ↑ "Sieben Braunkohle-Blöcke stehen vor endgültiger Stilllegung," Süddeutsche Zeitung, March 24, 2024
- ↑ RWE, "BoA 2&3," RWE website, accessed July 2008
- ↑ RWE, "RWE Facts & Figures 2007," RWE website, May 2007, page 137
- ↑ "Projects of coal-fired power plants in Germany since 2007," Deutsche Umwelthilfe, November 2012
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "Kraftwerk Neurath," Wikipedia, accessed June 2021
- ↑ "Frimmersdorf and Neurath power plants," RWE, accessed December 2010
- ↑ "Wind farm in Germany is being dismantled to expand coal mine," Balkan Green Energy News, October 25, 2022
- ↑ "RWE Power Lignite-Fired Plant, Neurath, Grevenbroich," Power Technology, accessed June 2021
- ↑ "Protest at RWE Neurath Power Station in Germany," Greenpeace, 2019
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.
