As part of its aim to transform the company and complete the decarbonisation of its portfolio, Uniper is to shut down its 875 MW Heyden 4 hard-coal-fired power plant, which will cease commercial electricity production by 1 January 2021 and close permanently on 1 July 2021, provided that the transmission system operator does not deem it relevant to the system. This is provided for in the schedule set out by German Federal Network Agency for the power plants that have been successful in the first round of auctions. These auctions were held in accordance with the German Law on the Reduction and Termination of Coal-Fired Power Generation of 13 August 13 2020. The German Federal Network Agency announced today that a bid submitted by the plant at Petershagen had been successful.
In January this year, Uniper presented a plan for closing its hard-coal-fired power plants in Germany, aimed at saving up to 18 million tons in CO2 emissions per year. It also sets out Uniper's intention to close the hard-coal-fired power plant blocks at the Gelsenkirchen Scholven, Heyden, Staudinger and Wilhelmshaven sites by the end of 2025 at the latest. These power plants have a combined total output of around 2900 MW.
Uniper's last coal-fired power plant in Germany will be the Datteln 4 power plant. It is one of the most modern power plants of its kind worldwide and is itself part of Uniper's strategy to reduce the company's CO2 emissions. The company is aiming to reduce its CO2 emissions in Germany by up to 40 % over the next five years through the planned voluntary closure of old and inefficient plants and by commissioning the Datteln 4 power plant.
Uniper has plans for the construction and operation of new gas-fired CHP plants with district heating, innovative solutions for supplying industrial customers with steam, heating, cooling and electricity, and the construction of plants for the industrial production of hydrogen.
The German Federal Network Agency will be accepting bids for the closure of further coal plants on fixed dates in the coming years. Participants in the auction offer to close a power plant at the time set out in their bid, in return for a payment of the bid value submitted by the participant. A capacity of four GW was tendered in the first auction, which began on September 1.
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