France’s Energy Ministry has confirmed that it could restart electricity production at a coal-fired power plant in the country’s east over the winter after it shut down in March “in light of the Ukrainian situation” and turmoil in the energy market. .
“There is an opportunity to run the Sainte-Avold power plant for a few more hours if we need it next winter,” the ministry said, confirming information reported by local radio station RTL.
She added: “In any case, electricity generation using coal will remain below the threshold of one percent of total production,” stressing that “Russian coal will not be used.”
There is currently only one coal-fired power plant in Cordemé in western France, which generates more than 67 percent of its electricity from nuclear power, while the share of electricity generated from fossil fuels in 2020 was about 7.5 percent, divided by 0.3 percent from coal. and 6.9 percent through coal.Gas.
The ministry stressed that the restart does not affect President Emmanuel Macron’s commitment to shut down all coal-fired power plants in France.
In turn, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands recently announced an increase in the use of coal, the most climate-damaging fossil fuel, to compensate for the reduction in Russian gas supplies to Europe.
Source: AFP