Press Release

RWE npower announces feasibility study for 1000MW ‘Clean Coal’ power station at Tilbury in Essex

12 April 2006

RWE npower, one of the UK’s leading electricity generators, today announced it is commencing a feasibility study into the construction of a ‘clean coal’ power plant at Tilbury on the Thames Estuary.  The new ‘carbon capture and storage’ technology could be ready by 2016 and could reduce the station’s carbon dioxide emissions levels by as much as 90% per year.

The study will look into ‘supercritical’ plant technology that improves the efficiency of the combustion process together with ‘carbon capture’ systems.  This offers the potential to isolate and store CO2 produced during the combustion of fossil fuels.  A key element of the study is to look at the transportation options and storage in geological formations (such as depleted oil reservoirs and depleted natural gas fields) to prevent it reaching the atmosphere.

The announcement follows proposals outlined last month (30 March) by parent company RWE to investigate the building of a €1bn CO2 free plant in Germany, subject to the necessary political framework conditions and authorisations. (1)

The Tilbury study will look at the end-to-end process from planning and consent to transport and storage options. RWE npower will also use its testing facilities at Didcot in Oxfordshire to examine ways to improve combustion efficiency and develop the chemical processes for stripping out and capturing the carbon dioxide.

RWE npower today also submitted its response to the Government’s Energy Review consultation and expressed a readiness to invest in a variety of low CO2 emitting forms of electricity generation, including offshore wind and new ‘Combined Cycle’ gas-fired power stations if the policy and regulatory environment is improved.

Andy Duff, CEO of RWE npower said, “The UK needs to maintain a broad mix of energy generation to guarantee secure electricity in the years ahead.  We also need to dramatically reduce emissions of carbon dioxide to hit environmental targets aimed at tackling global warming.  Both these goals can be achieved by the energy industry under the current market framework provided the Government adopts a supportive approach to investment, streamlining regulatory processes and pump-priming advanced technologies.

“Clean coal technology has real potential which we are committed to exploring, but the confidence needed to make these multi-million pound investments depends on Government maintaining a clear, transparent and consistent framework which encourages trust in future regulatory developments.”

RWE npower’s Energy Review response also calls for:

• A redefinition of the Energy Efficiency Commitment (the obligation on suppliers to offer free and discounted energy efficiency products and services) to deliver reduced carbon dioxide emissions and allowing the incorporation of broader range of new technologies including microgeneration.
• Government support for an allocation period for Phase 3 of the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) of at least 15 years - more closely aligned to investment cycles in large-scale generation technology.
• Retaining the Renewables Obligation (which requires suppliers to buy an increasing percent of their energy from renewable sources) as a long-term stable framework to continue to stimulate investment in new viable renewable energy generation.

(1)The RWE proposals would be the world’s first large-scale power station with integrated coal gasification, downstream CO2 separation and CO2 storage.