J-Power to shut 2 coal-fired power plants in 2025
31/10/2023 12:16
TOKYO, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Japan's Electric Power
Development(J-Power) 9513.T said on Tuesday it will shut two
500 megawatts (MW) coal-fired power plants at its Matsushima
power station in southern Japan to help achieve its 2025 target
of cutting carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
The move comes as utilities step up efforts to decarbonise
their facilities to combat global warming.
Japan's second-biggest coal-fired power generator after JERA
will permanently close the No.1 plant and suspend the No.2 plant
at the end of March 2025, though it will build a gasification
facility at the No.2 plant to restart it in 2028 with greater
efficiency and lower emissions.
"Through the closure and suspension, we will be able to
achieve our 2025 target of cutting CO2 emissions by 9.2 million
tonnes, or 19%, on 2013 levels," President Hitoshi Kanno told a
news conference, noting it will also increase the use of biomass
and cut the utilisation rate of other coal power plants.
"We will continue operation in Matsushima with an aim of
making it as a leading carbon-free thermal power plant in Japan
by using biomass and ammonia fuels as well as deploying carbon
capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) in the future," he said.
After implementing the gasification technology, the reformed
No.2 plant will be able to reduce its emissions by more than
10%, he said.
J-Power, which owns coal-fired plants at nine sites with
total generation capacity of 8.8 gigawatts (GW), will consider
downsizing some coal power plants and converting others to
CO2-free power plants, Kanno said.
For the current fiscal year to end-March, the company
lowered its net profit estimate by 12% to 67 billion yen from 76
billion yen due to lower electricity sales, falling power prices
overseas and a glitch at one of its local power plants.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi
Editing by Mark Potter)
((Yuka.Obayashi@thomsonreuters.com; +813-4520-1265;))