The world's first coal-fired power plant with a thermal efficiency of more than 50 percent will set new standards and make E.ON a pacesetter for this type of technology. The first of the next generation of 700-degree coal-fired plants will be sited in Wilhelmshaven in northwest Germany, cost more than EUR 1 billion to build, and will be the result of over a decade of R&D. Planning will be completed by early 2009, with construction to begin in early 2010. Plans call for the Wilhelmshaven plant to enter service by the middle of the next decade.

 

By deploying the 700 degree technology, specific CO₂ emissions compared to European coal-fired power plants with average thermal efficiency levels of only 36 percent, will be down by a third and down by 40 percent compared to the global thermal efficiency average of only 30 percent. If all hard-coal-fired plants incorporated 700-degree technology, global CO₂ emissions could be cut by several billion metric tons.

 

This new technology marks the beginning of a new era of coal-fired generation. Thanks to its unprecedented efficiency, the 50plus plant could also pave the way for the commercial viability of carbon capture and storage (CCS). As the CCS process consumes additional energy, higher efficiency will be to the benefit of this new, clean power plant technology. This cutting-edge technology will represent an important milestone towards a future of greater resource conservation, lower emissions, and continued supply security.