Yeniköy power station
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Yeniköy power station (Yeniköy Termik Santral) is an operating power station of at least 420-megawatts (MW) in Bağdamları, Milas, Muğla, Türkiye.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Yeniköy power station | Bağdamları, Milas, Muğla, Türkiye | 37.14019, 27.87154 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 2: 37.14019, 27.87154
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | operating | coal: lignite | 210 | subcritical | 1986 |
| Unit 2 | operating | coal: lignite | 210 | subcritical | 1987 |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Yenikoy Kemerkoy Elektrik Uretim Ve Ticaret AS [100%] | IC Holding [50.0%]; Limak Holding AŞ [50.0%] |
| Unit 2 | Yenikoy Kemerkoy Elektrik Uretim Ve Ticaret AS [100%] | IC Holding [50.0%]; Limak Holding AŞ [50.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Yeniköy mines (Sekköy, İkizköy, Akbelen, Karacahisar)Yeniköy mines (Sekköy, İkizköy, Akbelen, Karacahisar)
Financing
- Source of financing: İş Bankası, Ziraat, Garanti
Background
The two 210-MW coal-fired units of the Yeniköy mine-to-mouth coal-fired power plant were completed in 1986 and 1987. Coal for the plant comes from an adjacent lignite mine. The plant was built and owned by EÜAŞ, the Turkish state-owned energy utility.[1][2] The power station was reportedly financed by İş Bankası, Ziraat, and Garanti.[3]
In 2013, EÜAŞ announced plans to privatize the Yeniköy plant. These plans were met with forceful opposition from the plant's workers, including an occupation of the plant in April 2014. The plant is now owned by IC İÇTAŞ Enerji, part of IC Holding[4][5] and Limak Energy, part of Limak Holding. The power station was operated by Yeniköy Kemerköy Elektrik.[6]
Yeniköy is among three plants - along with Yatağan power station and Kemerköy power station - planned for rehabilitation in Muğla province, to extend the life of the plants by up to 30 years. Many residents oppose the rehabilitation.[7] Activists and residents have also opposed the coal mines that supply the three coal plants, stating their expansion into the Akbelen Forest threatens the area's long-standing olive groves that are an important part of the local economy.[8]
In September 2022, it was announced that a 16 MW solar project would be developed at the site of the Yeniköy power station.[9] At a meeting related to the project's environmental impact assessment, the local community protested the project's development. They claimed that the company had not complied with the rules and argued that the project was just an attempt to extend the life of the coal-fired power station.[10]
In August 2023, İkizköy residents made a press statement and applied to the Presidency for the immediate closure of Kemerköy, Yatağan and Yeniköy power stations. They stated that the power stations had been operating unconstitutionally since 1996.[11]
Description of Expansion
Platts listed an expansion of the Yeniköy plant (either to or by 630 MW).[12] No plans or mention of the supposed expansion can be found. It is possible that this was a confusion of the Yeniköy plant with the nearby 630-MW Kemerköy plant.
Environmental Impact
In February 2019 the Right to Clean Air Platform, a coalition of 17 professional organizations and NGOs, successfully campaigned to stop the Turkish Parliament from delaying stronger air pollution requirements for some old coal plants from 2019 until 2021.[13] The delay would have allowed Yeniköy to continue to operate without a desulphurization system or modernised dust filters.[14] In November 2019 the Turkish Parliament approved a bill to extend the deadline for stronger emissions standards to 2021.[15] However on Dec. 2, 2019 President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vetoed the bill and said this veto was motivated by "environmental sensitivity".[16]
As a result, Yeniköy and other privatised coal power plants that have not completed the required infrastructure including filtration system must complete these requirements beginning Jan. 1, 2020 or these plants will face closure and/or fines.[17] In January 2020 it was reported that the plant was in compliance with Environmental Law 2872 and would be allowed to continue operating.[18]
In April 2020, amidst the coronavirus outbreak, villagers in İkizköy in Muğla province communicated in a video message how they are being prevented from washing their hands and dishes due to water outages which they say is a result of excessive water usage taking place during rehabilitation work at the neighbouring Yeniköy plant.[19] The plant's owner has control of local water resources and is reportedly prioritising the maintenance of the plant's water reservoir at 90% capacity which is resulting in water being cut off for local villages.[20]
As of May 2020 the plant was operating with a "temporary activity certificate" that will allow it to continue operating until January 2021 despite its failure to comply with filtration requirements under Environmental Law 2872.[21] In May 2020 Greenpeace applied to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization to shut down Yeniköy and eight other plants not in compliance with Environmental Law 2872 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the correlation between fine particulate pollution and higher mortality rates from Covid-19.[21][22]
As of July 2022, the Limak Holding website read (Google translate): "Rehabilitation investments that will provide improvements in efficiency, capacity and environmental issues are continuing."[23]
In June 2023, an anonymous employee of Yeniköy power station claimed that chimney air filters were turned off at night to save costs. The air quality measurement station in the center of Yatağan district has not been operating since 2017.[24]
As of October 2023, Yeniköy power station reportedly consumed as much water annually as a city with a population of 335,000.[25]
In November 2023, 465 local residents and organizations made a joint petition to the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works (Devlet Su İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü (DSI)) demanding that DSI cancel the water allocations of Yatağan power station and Yeniköy power station. Article 7 of Turkiye's Regulation on Water Allocations reportedly required the prioritization of daily drinking water needs, and Muğla residents stated that water scarcity was a growing concern.[26]
In February 2024, a petition with 18,000 signatures, which advocated for the closure of Yeniköy power station, Kemerköy power station, and Yatağan power station, was sent to the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.[27]
In April 2024, residents of İkizköy were reportedly left without water for at least three days because of a pump malfunction at Yeniköy power station.[28]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ Yenikoy Coal Power Plant Turkey, Global Energy Observatory, accessed May 2014.
- ↑ Tarihçe, Yeniköy Yatağan Elektrik Üretim ve Ticaret A.Ş. website, accessed May 2014.
- ↑ "Coal & Climate Change - 2017," Önder Algedik, Aug 2017
- ↑ Santrallere özelleştirme işgali, CNN Türk, Apr. 18, 2014.
- ↑ Kemerköy Termik Santrali ve Yeniköy Termik Santrali'nin ihalesi yapılıyor, Bugün, Apr. 18, 2014.
- ↑ "YENİKÖY KEMERKÖY," company website, accessed June 2018
- ↑ "The Real Costs of Coal: Muğla," CAN Europe, July 2019
- ↑ "Locals, activists fighting to save Akbelen Forest stage protest in Turkish capital," Turkish Minute, August 8, 2023
- ↑ "Yeniköy Termik Santrali’nde güneş elektriği kullanılacak," Enerji Gunlugu, September 28, 2022
- ↑ "İkizköylüler YK Enerji’nin Kemerköy ve Yeniköy Termik Santral Sahalarında GES için İtiraz Ediyor," MUCEP, October 18, 2022
- ↑ "Muğla’daki 3 Termik Santralın Kapatılması için Cumhurbaşkanlığı’na Başvuruldu," Iklim Haber, August 25, 2023
- ↑ "World Electric Power Plants Database,", Platts, December 2013. The database is not available online but can be purchased from Platts.
- ↑ Step forward for health protection in Turkey: Proposal to extend the pollution exemptions given to privatised coal power plants withdrawn, Health And Environment Alliance, Feb. 15, 2019
- ↑ Turkish Parliament will vote about polluting coal power plants next week, Health And Environment Alliance, Feb. 1, 2019
- ↑ 50’inci madde kabul edildi, Yeşil Ekonomi, 22 Nov. 2019
- ↑ Erdoğan Vetoes Bill Postponing Installation of Filters to Coal-Fired Plants, Bianet, 02 December 2019.
- ↑ TBMM Plan Ve Bütçe Komisyonu, Santrallere Filtre Düzenlemesini Yeniden Görüştü, Meclis Haber, 4 December 2019.
- ↑ Anasayfa Gündem Haberleri Bakan Kurum'dan Bursa'yı da ilgilendiren termik santral açıklaması, Bursa Hakimiyet, Jan. 1, 2020
- ↑ Public video disseminated via Twitter, İkizköy İnsanca Yaşam için Direniyor Twitter account, Apr. 8, 2020
- ↑ Elif Cansu İlhan Muğla’da termik santral yüzünden sular kesik, Gazete Duvar, Apr. 9, 2020
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Koronavirüs döneminde filtresiz termik santraller kapatılmalı, Cumhuriyet, May 22, 2020
- ↑ Isabelle Garretsen, How air pollution exacerbates Covid-19 BBC, Apr. 27, 2020
- ↑ YENİKÖY KEMERKÖY TERMİK SANTRALLERİ Limak Holding, Apr. 27, 2020
- ↑ Yeniköy Termik Santrali’nde neler oluyor: Filtreleri gece kapatılıyor mu? Yesil Gazete, June 22, 2023
- ↑ Su krizinin başlıca nedenlerinden biri de ‘Termik Santraller’ Bodrum Haber Merkezi, October 17, 2023
- ↑ Su Yaşamdır Termik Santraller Ölüm MUÇEP, November 8, 2023
- ↑ "Termik Santraller Kapatılsın kampanyasında 18 bin 24 imza bakanlıklara gönderildi," muğla devrim, February 28, 2024
- ↑ Önce maden sonra insan: Santraldeki arıza İkizköy'ü susuz bıraktı soL haber, April 29, 2024
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.
