Italian utility Enel says that following an extensive refurbishment the Maritza East 3 thermal power plant is the only lignite fired power plant in the Balkans that is fully compliant with EU environmental standards.
The Italian utility and its Bulgarian partner NEK have completed work on the 28 year-old Maritza East 3 power plant, increasing its capacity by 68 MW and extending its operational life by 15 years. The companies say that the project was completed one month ahead of schedule.
The rehabilitation and modernisation of the plant represents the first major energy sector investment project financed without state guarantees in South East Europe. The four-unit plant’s capacity now stands at 908 MW while emissions of sulphur dioxide have been reduced by over 94 per cent. Enel invested more than EUR700 million in the project.
“Today … marks the successful completion of one of the largest investments in the energy sector in South Eastern Europe and fully financed without state guarantees,” said Piero Gnudi, Chairman of Enel at an event held to mark the project’s success. “The completion of this project is a major step ahead towards the introduction of cleaner coal energy generation in Bulgaria, a remarkable move on the path to sustainable development.”
Enel and NEK officially completed the project in February 2009, when the fourth and final unit of Maritza East 3 was synchronised to Bulgaria’s power grid. The work at the power plant included construction of two flue gas desulphurization units, the introduction of a comprehensive water management system and installation of a system to capture dust from the boiler process.
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