{"id":806,"date":"2014-11-01T19:31:35","date_gmt":"2014-11-01T18:31:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/euracoal.co\/?page_id=806"},"modified":"2014-11-01T19:31:35","modified_gmt":"2014-11-01T18:31:35","slug":"other-eu-energy-community","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/?page_id=806","title":{"rendered":"Other EU & Energy Community"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2005 treaty establishing the Energy Community requires contracting parties to implement important parts of the EU acquis<\/i> on energy markets and environmental protection.\u00a0 It provides for the creation of a single energy market and a mechanism for the operation of networks in the South East European region which disintegrated following the conflicts of the 1990s.\u00a0In 2011, the contracting parties agreed to implement the EU\u2019s third internal energy package by January 2015, although parties are not obliged to join the EU emissions trading system.<\/p>\n

The Energy Community offers opportunities to owners of coal-fired power plants in South East Europe who will gain access to what should soon become the world\u2019s largest electricity market.\u00a0 At the same time, plant owners will be required to make very substantial investments in pollution control equipment to meet stringent EU emissions legislation.<\/p>\n

\"austria_round_icon_640\"Austria<\/b><\/p>\n

Austria has limited primary energy resources and is dependent on energy imports for two thirds of its primary energy supply.\u00a0 Although no longer exploited, lignite resources total 333\u00a0million tonnes, lying mainly in western Styria, near Graz.<\/p>\n

During the Monarchy, the country\u2019s energy demand was largely met by coal from Moravia and Silesia.\u00a0 After each of the world wars, hard coal and lignite mining in Austria was expanded to replace production lost elsewhere; \u00a0lignite output peaked at over 6\u00a0million tonnes in 1963, when hard coal output was 100\u00a0thousand tonnes.\u00a0 However, with increasing trade and the trend towards greater oil and natural gas use, Austria\u2019s underground hard coal mines became less competitive and were closed during the 1960s.\u00a0 After more than two centuries, Austrian coal mining ended in 2006 with the re\u2011cultivation of Oberdorf lignite mine.<\/p>\n

Poland, the Czech Republic, the United States and Russia are the main coal exporters to Austria.\u00a0 In 2015, 3.8\u00a0million tonnes of coal were consumed, mostly by the power and steel industries. \u00a0The integrated steel works operated by VOESTALPINE at Linz has an annual crude steel production capacity of 6\u00a0million tonnes.\u00a0 At D\u00fcrnrohr power plant in Lower Austria, EVN owns and operates a 352\u00a0MW unit.\u00a0 A second 405\u00a0MW unit owned by VERBUND at the same site was closed in April 2015.<\/p>\n

Baltic States<\/b><\/p>\n

The neighbouring states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania lie between the Baltic Sea and Russia.\u00a0 In 2004, these former Soviet states joined the EU and by 2015 all had joined the eurozone.\u00a0 To their south, the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad Oblast borders Lithuania and Poland.<\/p>\n

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania seem poised to join the continental European electricity network after the signing in December 2014 of a roadmap by TSOs and then, in January 2015, of a declaration by energy ministers.\u00a0 The intention is to desynchronise the Baltic States from the Russian IPS\/UPS network, leaving Kaliningrad isolated unless DC links are built or the enclave joins the ENTSO system.<\/p>\n

While no coal is produced in the Baltic States, all three countries consume modest volumes of imported coal, mostly from Russia, and offer important transit routes for Russian coal exported elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\"latvia_round_icon_640\"In Latvia<\/b>, shipments through the Baltic Coal Terminal at Ventspils fell to just 1.9\u00a0million tonnes in 2015 as a result of retaliatory sanctions by Russia.\u00a0 A planned expansion of the 6.0\u00a0million tonne terminal to an annual capacity 10.5\u00a0million tonnes looks doubtful.\u00a0 Ust-Luga, 120\u00a0km west of St.\u00a0Petersburg, has become the largest port for coal in the region, although ice can hinder operations there as well as at St.\u00a0Petersburg and Vyborg (Vysotsk) ports.\u00a0 Alternative routes for Russian coal exports include via ports at Tallinn (Muuga) in Estonia, Riga and Liep\u0101ja in Latvia, Klaip\u0117da in Lithuania and Kaliningrad.\u00a0 Klaip\u0117da port is strategically important as the northernmost ice-free port on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, with good infrastructure links to Russia.<\/p>\n

\"russia_round_icon_640\"The Kaliningrad<\/b> enclave is dependent on imported energy from Russia, although power is generated locally.\u00a0 The 450\u00a0MW gas\u2011fired CHPP\u20112 was commissioned in 2010, supplementing the heat and power output from many smaller plants totalling 200\u00a0MW.\u00a0 To ensure power supply security, three new gas-fired units and a coal-fired unit are planned with a combined capacity of 1\u00a0000\u00a0MW.<\/p>\n

Although construction stopped in June 2013 of a new 2\u00a0400\u00a0MW nuclear power plant at Neman close to the Lithuanian border, it remains a viable project if customers for its electricity can be found in Germany, Poland and the Baltic States.\u00a0 With three years of civil works completed, major pieces of power plant equipment delivered to the site are being kept in storage in readiness of a decision to restart construction,<\/p>\n

\"lithuania_round_icon_640\"In Lithuania<\/b>, the closure of Ignalina nuclear power plant (NPP) at the end of 2009 left a power vacuum in the Baltic region.\u00a0 This could have been filled by the proposed Visaginas NPP, but a consultative referendum in October 2012 saw Lithuanians vote against this project.\u00a0 Meanwhile, the 2\u00a0400\u00a0MW Astravyets NPP, 50\u00a0kilometres from Vilnius, is under construction in Belarus, with commissioning of the first unit scheduled for 2019 followed by the second unit in 2020.<\/p>\n

In October 2014, a new floating LNG terminal was opened at Klaip\u0117da with an annual capacity of 4\u00a0billion cubic metres, partially filled with contracted gas from STATOIL of Norway.<\/p>\n

\"estonia_round_icon_640\"Estonia<\/b> is uniquely dependent on indigenous oil shale for its energy supply and enjoys an energy import dependency of just 8.9%, the lowest in the European Union.\u00a0 Large quantities of oil shale are used to generate competitively priced electricity at thermal power plants where it is used in much the same way as coal \u2013 either as a pulverised fuel in older boilers or in new circulating fluidised beds (CFBs).<\/p>\n

Oil shale is a sedimentary rock containing up to 50% organic matter \u2013 Estonian oil shale extracted from the Baltic kukersite deposit has a heating value of 8\u00a0000-11\u00a0000\u00a0kJ\/kg and 1.5% to 1.8% sulphur content.\u00a0 Once extracted from the ground, the rock can be either used directly as a fuel in power plants or processed into petroleum products.\u00a0 The only other countries that exploit oil shale are Brazil, China and Israel, with prospects in Jordan and the United States.<\/p>\n

Estonia\u2019s accessible oil shale resources total approximately 1.3\u00a0billion tonnes.\u00a0 In 2015, 15.2\u00a0million tonnes of oil shale (6.0\u00a0Mtce) were mined by EESTI ENERGIA and VIRU KEEMIA GRUPP at underground mines and by EESTI ENERGIA, KIVI\u00d5LI KEEMIAT\u00d6\u00d6STUS and KUNDA NORDIC TSEMENT at surface mines.\u00a0 Oil shale production has grown to meet growing demand for oil products produced from oil shale.\u00a0 In 2008, the annual limit of oil shale mining established by the government was 20\u00a0million tonnes and its objective was to reduce mining to 15\u00a0million tonnes by 2015.\u00a0 EESTI ENERGIA plans to implement longwall mining at its Estonia mine to improve recovery rates above those achieved with the room-and-pillar mining method employed to date.<\/p>\n

In 2015, Estonia generated 83.2% of its gross electricity supply of 10.4\u00a0TWh from oil shale, a share that is expected to decrease in the future in line with government policy.\u00a0 Around 75% of oil shale production is used for electricity and heat generation, notably at the EESTI ENERGIA Narva energy complex, comprising the 1\u00a0615\u00a0MW Eesti power plant and the 405\u00a0MW Balti power plant which also supplies heat to the town of Narva.\u00a0 The adjacent 300\u00a0MW Auvere power plant will be completed by GE in 2017, running on oil shale and biomass.<\/p>\n

The environmental issues associated with oil shale exploitation are complex. \u00a0With 45% incombustibles, ash can occupy 25% more<\/i> volume than the original shale which does not collapse when burnt. \u00a0To meet EU directives on emissions to air, all old pulverised-fuel boilers have been closed or upgraded. \u00a0Balti\u00a011 and Eesti\u00a08 were repowered with CFB boilers and further units have been fitted with a novel integrated desulphurisation system, supplemented with lime injection, and with deNOx systems.<\/p>\n

7\u00a0400 people are employed in the Estonian oil shale industry, of which 3\u00a0200 are employed at mines.<\/p>\n

\"belgium_round_icon_640\"Belgium<\/b><\/p>\n

In the 19th<\/sup> century, the Walloon coal mines of southern Belgium fuelled the country\u2019s industry-led expansion.\u00a0 Later, in 1917, coal mining started in the north-east around Limburg where the geological conditions were favourable.\u00a0 National coal production peaked at 30\u00a0million tonnes between 1952 and 1953 and was maintained at this level until the late 1950s.\u00a0 Output gradually declined as the Walloon and Limburg mines closed:\u00a0 Eisden mine closed in 1987 and Belgium\u2019s last colliery at Heusden-Zolder ceased production in 1992.\u00a0 Remaining hard coal resources are estimated to be 4\u00a0100 million tonnes.<\/p>\n

Imported coal totalled 4.2\u00a0million tonnes in 2015, coming mostly from Russia, Australia and the USA (more coal is imported into Antwerp for onward delivery to customers in other EU countries).\u00a0 Coal provides about 6% of Belgium\u2019s primary energy supply and is used mainly by the steel industry, notably by ARCELORMITTAL at Ghent.\u00a0 With the decommissioning of Ruien coal-fired power plant in 2013 and the conversion of other coal plants to fire biomass, coal consumption for power generation is no longer significant.<\/p>\n

Gross electricity supply in 2015 totalled 68.1\u00a0TWh of which 26.1\u00a0TWh (38.3%) was from nuclear power stations, 21.3\u00a0TWh (31.3%) from gas-fired plants, 4.2\u00a0TWh (6.2%) from coal (mainly at the 556\u00a0MW Langerlo power plant now owned by GRAANUL INVEST) and 8.7\u00a0TWh (12.8%) from wind and solar.\u00a0 Other coal-fired plants in Belgium consumed biomass which, together with generation from other biofuels and waste, accounted for 6.3\u00a0TWh (9.3%) of generation, with hydro (2.1%) and oil (0.2%) the remainder. \u00a0Electricity imports have risen fivefold since 1990 to 23.7\u00a0TWh in 2015 due to capacity closures and lower prices in France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. \u00a0Belgium\u2019s largest power utility, ELECTRABEL \u2013 a subsidiary of ENGIE \u2013 has invested in coal-fired power plants in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

\"cyprus_round_icon_640\"Cyprus<\/b><\/p>\n

Cyprus imports small quantities of hard coal for use mainly by its cement industry (CYPRUS CEMENT and VASSILICO CEMENT).\u00a0 An offshore discovery of natural gas reserves in the Levant basin, estimated to be at least 500\u00a0billion cubic metres, has the potential to significantly enhance the energy sector in Cyprus.\u00a0 With the new offshore gas exploration taking place, Cyprus may become an important LNG hub between Europe and Asia.<\/p>\n

\"denmark_round_icon_640\"Denmark<\/b><\/p>\n

With the rise in its oil and gas production from the North Sea, Denmark became energy self-sufficient in 1999 and, in 2004, a net exporter of primary energy.\u00a0 The country is the third largest oil producer in Western Europe, after Norway and the UK.\u00a0 However, oil and gas production are in decline and Denmark returned to being a net energy importer in 2013.\u00a0 Gas production in 2015 was 4.6\u00a0billion cubic metres \u2013 less than half of its 2005 peak and placing Denmark as the tenth-largest gas producer in Europe.<\/p>\n

Danish energy production has changed significantly as a result of political efforts to promote renewable energy, combined heat and power (CHP) and energy efficiency.\u00a0 The Danish Climate Policy Plan of 2013 aims at fossil-free energy and transport sectors by 2050.\u00a0 In 2015, more than half of all electricity generation was from renewable sources.\u00a0 Coal-fired power generation totalled 7.0\u00a0TWh (24.2%) and is expected to be gradually phased out, perhaps by 2030 if a previous government\u2019s target is met.<\/p>\n

The relatively high use of wind turbines for electricity generation (49.2% in 2015) enhances supply security, but also poses balancing challenges.\u00a0 The Danish electricity system has connections to Norway, Sweden and Germany, and electricity is traded across these borders:\u00a0 Denmark\u2019s net electricity imports in 2015 were 5.9\u00a0TWh or 17.1% of gross supply.\u00a0 As a part of the integrated Nordic electricity market, Denmark\u2019s coal-fired power plants play an important role in balancing not only wind power, but also hydro power from Norway and Sweden which depends on annual precipitation.<\/p>\n

Coal-fired power plants in Denmark have a total generation capacity of 4.5\u00a0GW.\u00a0 Majority state-owned DONG ENERGY is the owner of Asn\u00e6s (827\u00a0MW), Aved\u00f8re (262\u00a0MW), Ensted (626\u00a0MW), Esbjerg (417\u00a0MW), Stigsn\u00e6s (455\u00a0MW) and Studstrup (700\u00a0MW) power plants.\u00a0 VATTENFALL, the Swedish state-owned energy company, has retreated from the last of its fossil-fuelled assets in Denmark.\u00a0 The 319\u00a0MW Amager power plant was sold in 2013 and Fyn power plant (409\u00a0MW), initially intended for decommissioning, was sold in 2014 to a local municipality company.\u00a0 Finally, in 2015, the 410\u00a0MW Nordjylland plant was sold to another local municipality company.<\/p>\n

Some plants co-fire coal with biomass and many are CHP plants with connections to district heating systems, including Nordjyllandsv\u00e6rket\u00a03 which is one of the world\u2019s most efficient coal-fired power plants.\u00a0 Its supercritical boilers and steam turbines result in a very high electrical generation efficiency of 47% and, with the supply of heat, the overall efficiency can exceed 95%.\u00a0 Some larger coal-fired CHP plants are being converted to fire 100% biomass, mainly wood pellets.<\/p>\n

Denmark has no indigenous coal resources.\u00a0 In 2015, the country imported 2.8\u00a0million tonnes of coal, mainly from Russia, Colombia and South Africa.\u00a0 Over 95% of this coal is used for electricity and heat generation, including district heating.\u00a0 Having peaked in 1984 at 96%, the share of electricity produced from coal has fallen and the Danish government expects this decrease to continue to 15% in 2030.<\/p>\n

\"finland_round_icon_640\"Finland<\/b><\/p>\n

With an energy import dependency of 48.8% in 2014, Finland is dependent on foreign energy supplies because the country lacks oil, natural gas and coal reserves.\u00a0 This situation means that Finnish energy policy aims to maximise the country\u2019s energy diversity.\u00a0 One third of electricity production is from nuclear power plants and Finland\u2019s fifth nuclear reactor, a 1\u00a0600\u00a0MW EPR, is under construction at Olkiluoto, with more reactors planned.\u00a0 Locally produced peat (3.6\u00a0million tonnes in 2015) is used as a fuel, mainly at dedicated district heating plants and at combined heat and power (CHP) plants, the latter accounting for 4.2% of total electricity supply in 2015.<\/p>\n

Finland is one of the world leaders in renewable energy, especially bio-energy.\u00a0 Overall, renewable energy sources provide one third of Finland\u2019s total primary energy supply and accounted for 33.3% of power generation in 2015.\u00a0 Nevertheless, coal and natural gas are the main fuels for CHP plants in Finland.\u00a0 For conventional thermal power generation, coal is the leading source of energy, although its share in conventional generation is falling.\u00a0 In 2015, gross electricity generation from coal was 6.2\u00a0TWh (9.1% of total) and coal fuelled around one quarter of district heating.\u00a0 The efficiency of heat and power production in Finland is very high;\u00a0 approximately one third of electricity is produced at CHP plants which operate with overall efficiencies of 80% to 90%.\u00a0 These plants are used widely by industry and for both district heating and cooling.<\/p>\n

Annual coal imports to Finland were 3.5\u00a0million tonnes in 2015: \u00a02.2\u00a0million tonnes of steam coal for energy production and 1.3\u00a0million tonnes of coking coal for the steel industry.\u00a0 Small quantities of coal are used by the cement industry.\u00a0 All coal is imported, steam coal mostly from Russia and coking coal from North America.<\/p>\n

The EU\u2019s influence on domestic energy policy has increased in recent years, notably the 20-20-20 targets.\u00a0 Finland is implementing many integrated energy and climate policy measures, in particular energy efficiency and energy-saving measures, and increasing the share of renewable energy to 38% by 2020.\u00a0 As well as the increased share of renewable energy, the national energy and climate strategy aims to maintain the position of peat as an indigenous energy resource, but to diminish the share of fossil fuels, in particular coal.\u00a0 Therefore, the construction of new coal-fired capacity is unlikely, except where coal is co-fired with biomass or used in multi-fuel boilers.\u00a0 Energy sources for electricity production should continue to be diversified and versatile, thanks to the flexibility and variety of CHP plants.<\/p>\n

\"france_round_icon_640\"France<\/b><\/p>\n

Hard coal mining in France ended in April 2004 with the closure of the last operational mine, La Houve in the Lorraine region.\u00a0 The state-owned coal company Charbonnages de France ceased activity at the end of 2007.\u00a0 Small quantities of coal are recovered from spoil tips in Northern France and slurry ponds in Lorraine, but this was just 20\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015.\u00a0 Today, all coal is imported.<\/p>\n

Coal resources in France are estimated by the French geological survey (BRGM) to be 425\u00a0million tonnes of hard coal plus an additional 300\u00a0million tonnes of lignite.\u00a0 Despite several proposals, there has been, to date, no successful project to revive coal mining in France.<\/p>\n

In 2015, coal imports amounted to 14.3\u00a0million tonnes, including a significant amount of coking coal.\u00a0 Coal is delivered through the ports of Dunkerque, Le Havre, Rouen, Montoir and Fos-sur-Mer, as well as via the ARA ports.<\/p>\n

Gross power generation in France was 562.8\u00a0TWh in 2015, with 77.0% of this total generated at nuclear power plants.\u00a0 Conventional thermal electricity production contributed 6.0%, hydro 10.5%, wind 3.7% and solar PV 1.3%.\u00a0 Coal-fired generation accounted for 2.2% of the total while the share of renewables was 16.4%.<\/p>\n

Coal consumption amounted to 13.6\u00a0million tonnes in 2015, of which 3.4\u00a0million tonnes were consumed at power plants.\u00a0 The largest plants are located at Cordemais (1\u00a0200\u00a0MW) and Le Havre (600\u00a0MW), both owned by EDF, adjacent to ports, and the single remaining unit\u00a06 at Emile-Huchet (600\u00a0MW) owned by UNIPER in Lorraine.\u00a0 In compliance with the Large Combustion Plants Directive (LCPD), two of Le Havre\u2019s three units closed in 2013.\u00a0 The remaining unit\u00a04 is expected to operate until 2035.\u00a0 With a view to the future, EDF commissioned a pilot-scale CO2<\/sub> capture plant at Le Havre in 2012.\u00a0 The company owns three smaller coal-fired plants: \u00a0Bl\u00e9nod (500\u00a0MW), Bouchain (250\u00a0MW) and La Maxe (500\u00a0MW).\u00a0 Bl\u00e9nod closed in 2014 and the two others closed in 2015.\u00a0 Similarly, UNIPER closed the four oldest units at its French coal-fired power plants (235\u00a0MW Hornaing\u00a03, 245\u00a0MW Lucy\u00a03 and Emile Huchet\u00a04 and 5) between 2013 and 2015, as required by the LCPD, while the 230\u00a0MW Gardanne\u00a04 (170\u00a0MW) in Provence is being converted to biomass by DOOSAN, leaving the 595\u00a0MW unit\u00a05 on coal.<\/p>\n

The French steel industry consumes important volumes of coal \u2013 1.9\u00a0million tonnes for coking and 5.9\u00a0million tonnes in integrated steel works in 2015.\u00a0 ARCELORMITTAL plants at Dunkerque, Florange and Fos-sur-Mer are the biggest coal consumers in this sector.<\/p>\n

\"georgia_round_icon_640\"Georgia<\/b><\/p>\n

Lying in the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia, Georgia has significant hard coal reserves of 201\u00a0million tonnes plus resources of 700\u00a0million tonnes in the Tkibuli-Shaori and Tkvarcheli deposits.\u00a0 The Akhaltsikhe lignite deposit near Vale has reserves of 76\u00a0million tonnes, currently not exploited.\u00a0 Coal production in Georgia peaked at 3\u00a0million tonnes in 1958, but by 2000 production had collapsed to almost zero.\u00a0 Today, following the \u201cRose Revolution\u201d of 2003 and conflict with Russia in 2008, the coal industry is being revitalised.\u00a0 In 2015, Georgia produced 353\u00a0thousand tonnes of lignite from mines at Tkibuli and imported 112\u00a0thousand tonnes of hard coal mainly for industrial use.<\/p>\n

Coal provided 6.6% of Georgia\u2019s total primary energy supply of 6.3\u00a0million tonnes of coal equivalent in 2014. \u00a0Natural gas is the main primary energy source (41.8%), followed by oil (23.8%), hydro (16.3%) and biomass (10.6%). \u00a0Wood consumption, mainly for space heating, water heating and cooking, leads to significant problems with deforestation. \u00a0Hydro power plants are the most important source of electricity (78% of the 10.8\u00a0TWh total in 2015) with thermal power plants fired on imported natural gas from Russia accounting for the remainder.\u00a0 There is potential to expand hydro and wind power generation for export.\u00a0 To this end, the 2\u00a0x\u00a0350\u00a0MW Black Sea Transmission Network HVDC link with Turkey was completed in December 2013 with support from the European Investment Bank and the German government.\u00a0 Georgia is now looking to construct another HVDC link to Armenia.<\/p>\n

SAQNAKHSHIRI, a subsidiary of the GEORGIAN INDUSTRIAL GROUP (GIG), owns and operates two underground coal mines, Dzidziguri and Mindeli in the city of Tkibuli, the only coal mines in Georgia.\u00a0 These mines were rehabilitated and a new coal preparation plant commissioned in 2009 to supply cement works at Kaspi and Rustavi as well as the ferroalloy industry.\u00a0 The mines employed 1\u00a0400 workers in 2015.\u00a0 With GIG\u2019s license covering more than 331\u00a0million tonnes of resources, the Tkibuli coal mining development plan envisages raising output to one million tonnes per year by 2020.<\/p>\n

GIG operates a small coal-fired power plant with a capacity of 49\u00a0MW at Tkibuli.\u00a0 Tenders have been invited for the modernisation of a damaged 300\u00a0MW power unit at Gardabani near Tbilisi with a coal-fired CFB boiler which would lead to an expansion of mining in the Tkibuli-Shaori coalfield. \u00a0GIG plans to have more than 1\u00a0000\u00a0MW of capacity by 2020, a significant increase on the company\u2019s current capacity of 662\u00a0MW or around 20% of Georgia\u2019s total generation capacity.<\/p>\n

In June 2014, Georgia signed an Association Agreement with the European Union which includes a \u201cdeep and comprehensive free trade area\u201d.\u00a0 The country is also a candidate party to the Energy Community Treaty and hopes to join the European Network of Transmission System operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E).<\/p>\n

In the breakaway republic of Abkhazia, the Turkish operator TAMSASH produces coking coal from an opencast mine in the Tkvarcheli coalfield.<\/p>\n

\"ireland_round_icon_640\"Ireland<\/b><\/p>\n

The Republic of Ireland has no indigenous coal production, although 3.5\u00a0million tonnes of peat were extracted in 2015 for energy use, this being 39.4% of total indigenous energy production. \u00a0Coal imports totalled 2.4\u00a0million tonnes in 2015, all steam coal and coming mostly from Colombia. \u00a0Coal and peat use have declined, but together still accounted for 16.3% of the country\u2019s total primary energy supply of 18.9\u00a0million tonnes of coal equivalent in 2015, used mainly for power generation.<\/p>\n

BORD NA M\u00d3NA is the leading peat producer and distributes solid fuel products within the residential heating market in Ireland.\u00a0 The company\u2019s peat briquettes are popular due to their low sulphur emissions and competitive price.<\/p>\n

Since 2001, peat-fired power plants have been supported by a public service obligation as they contribute to security of electricity supply with the use of indigenous fuels. \u00a0However, this support is expiring: \u00a0in 2015 in the case of the Edenderry power plant and in 2019 in the cases of the West Offaly and Lough Ree plants. \u00a0In addition, the government has set biomass dilution targets for peat used as a fuel. \u00a0For example, the 128\u00a0MW Edenderry power plant was designed and built to fire peat, but is now co\u2011fired with a mixture of peat and carbon-neutral biomass from forests and energy crops. \u00a0The use of such biomass commenced in 2008 and has increased steadily.\u00a0 Taken together, these developments will further reduce the demand for peat and mean that, by 2030, no energy peat will be harvested. \u00a0In 2015, 8.7% of Irish electricity was generated at peat-fired power plants.<\/p>\n

Ireland has a single coal-fired power plant at Moneypoint in County Clare operated by the ELECTRICITY SUPPLY BOARD (ESB).\u00a0 At 915\u00a0MW, it is Ireland\u2019s largest power station, having been fully commissioned in 1987 as part of a fuel diversity strategy.\u00a0 Significant refurbishments have been carried out by ESB to meet environmental standards, including a \u20ac368\u00a0million investment in pollution control equipment to meet EU regulations on NOx and SO2<\/sub>. \u00a0Moneypoint is expected to operate until at least 2025.<\/p>\n

Natural gas was the dominant fuel for power generation in 2015 with a 44.6% share of generation, followed by wind (22.9%) and coal (17.2%).\u00a0 In 2015, Ireland imported 96.5% of its natural gas needs. \u00a0This points to a high security of supply risk since all imports must flow through a single transit point at Moffat in Scotland.\u00a0 However, the Corrib offshore gas field came on stream in late 2015 and is expected to meet approximately 40% of the combined gas demand of Ireland and Northern Ireland over the first two years of production before output starts to decline.\u00a0 Overall, Ireland had an 85.3% energy import dependence, compared with an EU average of 53.5% in 2014.<\/p>\n

According to a government consultation paper \u201cTowards a New Affordable Energy Strategy for Ireland\u201d which reviewed the national energy strategy in 2015, more can be done on energy affordability. \u00a0Work by the Irish Institute of Public Health suggests that Ireland experiences a significant level of excess winter deaths with over 50% of these being attributable to poor heating due to energy poverty.<\/p>\n

\"italy_round_icon_640\"Italy<\/b><\/p>\n

Italy\u2019s energy demand peaked in 2005.\u00a0 Then, following the global financial crisis of 2008, the country\u2019s GDP stagnated and its total primary energy supply fell.\u00a0 The worldwide decrease in energy commodity prices, especially oil prices, led to a helpful 23% reduction in the country\u2019s energy import bill from \u20ac44.6\u00a0billion in 2014 to \u20ac34.5\u00a0billion in 2015.\u00a0 Apart from renewable energy sources, which have grown with strong hydroelectric production, the use of all other energy sources has decreased, reflecting and worsening the economic situation.<\/p>\n

The only coal reserves and resources in Italy are located in the Sulcis Iglesiente basin, in south-west Sardinia, totalling an estimated 610\u00a0million tonnes.\u00a0 Mining activities were stopped there in 1972, but restarted in 1997 with many environmental improvements.\u00a0 CARBOSULCIS, owned by the Autonomous Government of Sardinia, will close its single mine in December 2018, with production gradually declining from 73\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015 to 30\u00a0thousand in 2018.<\/p>\n

Italian electricity production is unique in Europe and among the G8 countries without any solid base of nuclear power or coal-fired power generation and an overdependence on oil and gas for power generation.\u00a0 Natural gas dominates with a 38.2% share of power generation in 2015, followed by coal (16.6%), hydro (16.0%), solar (8.9%), wind (5.2%) and oil (4.8%).\u00a0 Biofuels, energy from waste and geothermal accounted for the balance of electricity production.\u00a0 Net electricity imports of 46.4\u00a0TWh met over 14% of gross electricity supply, coming mainly from nuclear and hydro power plants in Switzerland, France and Slovenia.\u00a0 This strong dependence on imported electricity is expected to grow over the coming years.<\/p>\n

In a decisive June 2011 referendum, Italian voters rejected government proposals to restart a nuclear programme that was abandoned following an earlier referendum held after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.\u00a0 The government responded with a National Energy Strategy.\u00a0 Approved in March 2013, this strategy places an emphasis on renewable energy sources and the greater use of natural gas for power generation \u2013 both of which have further increased the cost of electricity in Italy.\u00a0 High electricity costs have a negative impact on industrial competitiveness: \u00a0in 2015, Italian industry paid 16.14\u00a0\u20acc\/kWh compared with an EU average of 11.75\u00a0\u20acc\/kWh, being the highest in the EU.<\/p>\n

Italy had an overall energy import dependence of 75.9% in 2014, rising to 89.7% in the case of natural gas which comes mainly from Russia (43%), Algeria (12%), Libya (12%)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 and the Netherlands (12%), at unattractive prices.\u00a0 In 2015, Italy imported 16.0\u00a0million tonnes of steam coal and 3.5\u00a0million tonnes of coking coal.\u00a0 The main supply countries are South Africa, Russia, Indonesia, the USA, Colombia and Australia.\u00a0 ENEL has a 10% shareholding in PT\u00a0BAYAN RESOURCES of Indonesia which produced 11.3\u00a0million tonnes in 2015.\u00a0 Coal imports peaked in 2008 at 25.1\u00a0million tonnes and have since fallen because of the forced closure of the 660\u00a0MW Vado Ligure coal-fired power plant owned by TIRRENO POWER and the enduring troubles at the ILVA steel plant in Taranto.<\/p>\n

With the conversions from fuel oil to coal and modernisation of many power plants, Italy now has some of the best-performing plants in Europe, with an average efficiency of 40% compared with the European average of 35%. \u00a0ENEL\u2019s 1\u00a0980\u00a0MW coal-fired Torrevaldaliga Nord power plant attains an efficiency of 46%, thus matching the world-leading performance of plants in Japan and Denmark.<\/p>\n

Alongside much work on carbon capture and storage, Italy has committed to a programme of industrial innovation aimed at engineering oxy-fuel combustion technology for CO2<\/sub> capture and geological storage under a project developed by the Sotacarbo Technology Hub for Clean Energy.<\/p>\n

\"luxembourg_round_icon_640\"Luxembourg<\/b><\/p>\n

In 1952, when its prosperity was based on steelmaking, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg was chosen as the site of the European Coal and Steel Community, marking the start of the institutional development that led to the European Union.<\/p>\n

With an energy-import dependence of 96.6%, second only to Malta among the EU member states, Luxembourg is almost entirely dependent on imports for its energy needs.\u00a0 The country has two major power generation sites: \u00a0a 1\u00a0300\u00a0MW pumped-storage hydro plant at Vianden and a 385\u00a0MW combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant at Esch-sur-Alzette operated by TWINERG.\u00a0 The domestic electricity grid forms part of the German control bloc managed by the transmission system operator AMPRION.<\/p>\n

The steel industry\u2019s conversion to electric-arc furnaces (ARCELORMITTAL steel works at Belval, Differdange and Schifflange) has practically eliminated Luxembourg\u2019s coal use.\u00a0 Coal is used today mainly for the production of cement at the CIMALUX Rumelange plant.\u00a0 All coal is imported \u2013 73\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015 \u2013 and makes only a small contribution to the country\u2019s primary energy supply.\u00a0 Yet, in 2014, Luxembourg had the highest per capita<\/i> CO2<\/sub> emissions (16.57\u00a0tCO2<\/sub>\/capita) of all the OECD countries.<\/p>\n

\"malta_round_icon_640\"Malta<\/b><\/p>\n

Malta has no conventional energy production and reports no coal consumption.\u00a0 Until 1995, coal was imported for power generation.\u00a0 ENEMALTA\u2019s Delimara power station, with a capacity of 444\u00a0MW, burns imported fuel oil in steam boilers\/turbines and diesel engines, as well as distillate fuel in gas turbines.\u00a0 In 2014, the Malta Environment and Planning Authority approved the building of a new 215\u00a0MW gas-fired power plant at Delimara with floating LNG storage and regasification facilities.\u00a0 A new 200\u00a0MW interconnector between Malta and Sicily was inaugurated in April 2015.<\/p>\n

\"moldova_round_icon_640\"Moldova<\/b><\/p>\n

The Republic of Moldova does not produce coal or lignite.\u00a0 It imports small quantities of hard coal for use by industry and in heating plants \u2013 183\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015.\u00a0 Coal represents about 3% of gross inland energy consumption.<\/p>\n

Electricity is imported from Ukraine, but mostly from the 2\u00a0520\u00a0MW Kuchurgan thermal power plant located in the Transnistria region.\u00a0 The plant can be fuelled by coal, natural gas or fuel oil.\u00a0 In 1990, over 4\u00a0million tonnes of coal were consumed there, but since the late 1990s the station has used virtually no coal.\u00a0 Although the Moldovan electricity grid is synchronised with Russia\u2019s (IPS\/UPS), some units at Kuchurgan could be synchronised with Continental Europe to allow exports of electricity via Romania.\u00a0 Owned by MOLDAVSKAYA GRES, a subsidiary of the Russian company INTER RAO UES, the plant is in need of refurbishment and only operates at around 20% of its installed capacity.<\/p>\n

The remaining supply of electricity is covered by a 330\u00a0MW gas-fired combined heat and power (CHP) plant, several more CHP plants at sugar refineries (totalling 98\u00a0MW) and two hydro power plants (16\u00a0MW and 48\u00a0MW).<\/p>\n

\"netherlands_round_icon_640\"The Netherlands<\/b><\/p>\n

Hard coal mining dominated the South Limburg area of the Netherlands from the early 1900s to the mid-1970s.\u00a0 The coalfield, located in the south of the country close to the German and Belgian borders, was mainly exploited from underground mines.<\/p>\n

Since around 1915, lignite was extracted at opencast mines near the towns of Eygelshoven and Hoensbroek.\u00a0 These deposits were located on the north-west fringe of the large German lignite basin to the west of Cologne.\u00a0 Lignite mining ceased in 1968 with the closure of the Carisborg site.<\/p>\n

The Netherlands is home to the main trans-loading ports for coal imports into Europe.\u00a0 Rotterdam and Amsterdam ports, along with Antwerp in Belgium, constitute the ARA trading area for imported coking coal and steam coal in north-west Europe.<\/p>\n

Over 15% of the Netherlands\u2019 primary energy supply is provided by coal.\u00a0 In 2015, the country imported 12.4\u00a0million tonnes, comprising 8.9\u00a0million tonnes of steam coal and 3.5\u00a0million tonnes of coking coal.\u00a0 The main supplier countries were Colombia, South Africa, the USA and Russia.<\/p>\n

Most imported coal is used for coal-fired power generation and coal had a 37.3% share of the Dutch power generation market in 2015 which totalled 110.0\u00a0TWh.\u00a0 The new ENGIE Maasvlakte power plant (800\u00a0MW) was commissioned in early 2015.\u00a0 Two other new plants are the RWE\/ESSENT Eemshaven plant (1\u00a0560\u00a0MW) near Groningen and the UNIPER Maasvlakte\u00a03 plant (1\u00a0116\u00a0MW) in the Rotterdam area.\u00a0 All three of these plants employ the latest supercritical steam technologies to achieve high energy efficiencies.\u00a0 Older installed and operating coal-fired plants are located at Geertruidenberg (Amer 600\u00a0MW), Borssele (426\u00a0MW) and Amsterdam (Hemweg 630\u00a0MW).\u00a0 All these plants co-fire coal with biomass, to a greater or lesser extent.\u00a0 Ownership is very diverse, with ESSENT (a subsidiary of RWE), ELECTRABEL (a subsidiary of ENGIE), UNIPER, EPZ and NUON (a subsidiary of VATTENFALL) being the major players in coal-fired generation.<\/p>\n

The Netherlands has a progressive policy on coal and the government has supported CCS demonstration projects, including the ROAD project (Rotterdam Opslag en Afvang Demonstratieproject).<\/p>\n

TATA STEEL owns the IJmuiden integrated steel works which has a crude steel annual production capacity of 7\u00a0million tonnes and consumes most of the coking and PCI coal imported by the Netherlands.\u00a0 A pilot project at IJmuiden to demonstrate a new iron-making process, called Hisarna, aims to reduce CO2<\/sub> emissions from steelmaking.<\/p>\n

\"norway_round_icon_640\"Norway<\/b><\/p>\n

Norway, Europe\u2019s northernmost country, opted to stay out of the EU by referendum in 1994, but is a significant supplier to the EU of coal, oil and natural gas.\u00a0 In 2014, 31.6% of EU gas imports came from Norway, the world\u2019s second largest gas exporter after Russia.\u00a0 Hydro power plants supplied 95.9% of Norway\u2019s gross electricity generation in 2015 and the country is a significant net exporter of electricity:\u00a0 10% of gross production.<\/p>\n

In 2015, Norway produced 1.1\u00a0million tonnes of hard coal and imported 0.7\u00a0million tonnes of steam coal plus 0.4\u00a0million tonnes of coke for use in the metallurgical industry, chemicals production and cement manufacture.<\/p>\n

Norway has access to deposits of good quality, high calorific value coal at Svalbard lying within the Arctic Circle where resources are estimated to total 53.1\u00a0million tonnes, with reserves of 1.9\u00a0million tonnes.<\/p>\n

Coal mining on Spitsbergen, the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago, serves multiple government goals, not all related to energy.\u00a0 Without continued peaceful economic activity on Spitsbergen, Norwegian sovereignty might be weakened by foreign economic activity since the Svalbard Treaty of 1920 grants rights to all thirty-nine signatories.\u00a0 The state-owned STORE NORSKE SPITSBERGEN KULKOMPANI (SNSK) operates three drift mines employing 207 people: \u00a0Svea Nord longwall mine located 60\u00a0kilometres south of Longyearbyen, the new Lunckefjell mine north-east of Svea which opened in February 2014 and Gruve\u00a07 room-and-pillar mine in the valley of Adventdalen near Longyearbyen.\u00a0 Coal production at Svea Nord in 2015 was 1\u00a0040\u00a0450 tonnes, Gruve\u00a07 produced 57\u00a0782 tonnes and Lunckefjell 7\u00a0359\u00a0tonnes before it was mothballed in January 2015.\u00a0 There is no road connection between Longyearbyen and Svea, so all personnel transport is by plane or snowmobile in the winter.\u00a0 Spitsbergen\u2019s 10\u00a0MW coal-fired combined heat and power plant takes coal from Gruve\u00a07 and a decision must be taken soon on its replacement.\u00a0 At NOK 3-5\u00a0billion, an underwater cable from the mainland is possible, but hugely expensive.<\/p>\n

A difficult economic situation throughout 2015, caused by low coal prices, led to extensive cost reductions and a significant downsizing of SNSK, a process that has continued in 2016.\u00a0 The plan is to resume coal production at Lunckefjell when prices pick up.\u00a0 To bring in some revenue from tourists, Gruve\u00a03 which closed in 1996 re\u2011opened as a museum with underground tours.<\/p>\n

Coal is sold on the international market \u2013 71% for energy production, 13% to industry (cement, paper and other speciality applications) and 16% to steelworks at an average selling price of 450 NOK (50 USD) per tonne in 2015 \u2013 with Germany being the largest customer.\u00a0 SNSK cannot provide a year-round supply of coal because the sea port at Sveagruva is frozen for much of the year.\u00a0 Twenty shipments to Rotterdam and Hamburg were made between 7\u00a0August and 21\u00a0November 2015.<\/p>\n

Political guidance for SNSK\u2019s operations is laid down in a government White Paper (No.\u00a022 to the Storting, 2008-2009), establishing that SNSK and its coal mining operations are \u2013 and will remain \u2013 important for maintaining a Norwegian community in Longyearbyen on Spitsbergen.\u00a0 In March 2015, the Norwegian government decided that, in order to enable continued mining operations during the period of low coal prices, it would award NOK 649\u00a0million in subsidies to SNSK between 2016 and 2019.\u00a0 Completely at odds with this decision, Norway\u2019s sovereign-wealth fund, the world\u2019s largest, has sold most of its shareholdings in coal mining companies after succumbing to a global campaign against coal.<\/p>\n

In co\u2011operation with SINTEF and the Arctic University of Norway, SNSK is engaged in research projects supported by the Norwegian Research Council on alternative uses for coal and processed coal with the aim of increasing the value of Svalbard coal.<\/p>\n

Norwegians are conscious that end-use emissions from the country\u2019s exports of oil and gas are very substantial.\u00a0 In response, Norway has been a pioneer in the field of carbon capture and storage: \u00a0at the Sleipner natural gas field and at the Sn\u00f8hvit LNG project.\u00a0 The CO2<\/sub> Technology Centre Mongstad was inaugurated in May 2012 to develop CO2<\/sub> capture technologies for both gas- and coal-fired power plants.<\/p>\n

\"portugal_round_icon_640\"Portugal<\/b><\/p>\n

Portugal has limited indigenous energy resources, leading to a 71.6% energy-import dependence in 2014.\u00a0 Its last coal mine, Germunde in the Castelo de Paiva region, was closed in 1994, leaving behind reserves of 3\u00a0million tonnes.\u00a0 The country also has lignite resources of 66\u00a0million tonnes.<\/p>\n

In 2015, 48.9% of Portugal\u2019s electricity production came from renewable energy sources:\u00a0 wind, hydro, solar PV, geothermal and wave.\u00a0 Nevertheless, coal-fired electricity generation remains crucial to cover those periods when wind and solar power are not available and to balance the annual variations in hydro electricity production on the Iberian Peninsula.\u00a0 Imported coal accounted for 14.7% of total primary energy supply in 2015 with imports of 5.6\u00a0million tonnes coming almost entirely from Colombia. \u00a0Most of this coal was consumed at Portugal\u2019s two coal-fired power plants located at Sines (1\u00a0256\u00a0MW) and Pego (628\u00a0MW).\u00a0 Both are fitted with flue gas desulphurisation and selective catalytic reduction to reduce emissions of sulphur dioxide and NOx.<\/p>\n

Sines power plant, adjacent to a coal import terminal on the Atlantic coast, was built in the late 1980s and is owned by ENERGIAS DE PORTUGAL (EDP).\u00a0 The inland Pego power plant, about 120\u00a0kilometres north-west of Lisbon, was fully commissioned in 1995 and is now owned by TRUST ENERGY, a joint venture of ENGIE, MARUBENI and ENDESA, a subsidiary of ENEL.<\/p>\n

By 2020, Portugal intends to generate 60% of its electricity from renewable energy sources in order to satisfy 31% of its final energy consumption.\u00a0 Although Portugal has this ambitious target, austerity measures following the economic crisis mean that the government has had to scale back support for renewable energy and revise capacity payments.\u00a0 Moreover, the country faces a massive \u201ctariff deficit\u201d, this being the shortfall between electricity sector tariff revenues and actual costs, including the payment of renewable subsidies.\u00a0 At the end of 2014, the total accumulated tariff deficit was estimated at \u20ac4.69\u00a0billion or 3.1% of GDP.<\/p>\n

South East Europe<\/b><\/p>\n

The countries of South East Europe not covered in earlier chapters include Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro.<\/p>\n

\"albania_round_icon_640\"Albania<\/b> produces very small volumes of lignite, about 4\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015, and imports further volumes to meet demand totalling an estimated 106\u00a0thousand tonnes at industrial and residential customers, including the Antea cement works.\u00a0 With total resources of 727\u00a0million tonnes, the country has the potential to support a much larger lignite mining industry.\u00a0 During the 1980s, annual production of around 2.4\u00a0million tonnes came from mines in central Albania at Valias, Man\u00ebz and Krrab\u00eb;\u00a0 at Mborje and Drenov\u00eb in the Kor\u00e7\u00eb district;\u00a0 in northern Tepelen\u00eb at Memaliaj and at Alarup to the south of Lake Ohrid.<\/p>\n

The country produces all of its electricity at hydro plants. \u00a0ENEL planned to build an 800\u00a0MW coal-fired power plant at Porto Romano and export electricity to Italy, but Albania is now focussed on increasing its hydro capacity and completing a 400\u00a0kV interconnector with Kosovo.<\/p>\n

\"bosnia_and_herzegovina_round_icon_640\"In Bosnia and Herzegovina<\/b>, brown coal and lignite make a large contribution to primary energy supply (56.7% in 2014). \u00a0In 2015, the country produced a total of 12.6\u00a0million tonnes of brown coal and lignite, consumed mainly at power plants near to mines that accounted for 62.8% of gross electricity production in 2014. \u00a0The country imported 1.4\u00a0million tonnes of hard coal in 2015. \u00a0At 2\u00a0264\u00a0million tonnes, Bosnia and Herzegovina\u2019s reserves of lignite are substantial and total resources of 5\u00a0274\u00a0million tonnes are reported.\u00a0 The largest coal deposits are located in the north-east of the country around Tuzla in the Kreka-Banovi\u0107i coal basin.\u00a0 Bosnian lignite parameters (a.r.) are:\u00a0 lower calorific value: 9\u00a0100\u00a0kJ\/kg (2\u00a0200 kcal\/kg), moisture: 49%, ash: 3.8%, sulphur: 0.13%.<\/p>\n

ELEKTROPRIVREDA BiH dd SARAJEVO is the state-owned parent company of KONCERN EPBiH which has seven subsidiary coal mining companies: \u00a0Rudnici \u201eKreka\u201c Tuzla (Sikulje and Dubrave opencast lignite mines and Mramor underground mine);\u00a0 RMU \u201eKakanj\u201c d.o.o.-Kakanj (Vrtli\u0161te opencast mine, Haljini\u0107i undergound mine and the Begi\u0107i-Bi\u0161trani underground mine which opened in July 2013);\u00a0 RMU \u201eZenica\u201c d.o.o Zenica (Stara Jama, Raspoto\u010dje and Stranjani underground mines);\u00a0 RMU \u201eBreza\u201c d.o.o. Breza (underground mines at Sretno and Kamenice);\u00a0 RMU \u201e\u0110ur\u0111evik\u201c u \u0110ur\u0111eviku, d.o.o. (Vi\u0161\u0107a opencast brown coal mine and \u0110ur\u0111evik underground mine);\u00a0 RMU \u201eAbid Loli\u0107\u201c d.o.o Travnik-Bila;\u00a0 and RU \u201eGra\u010danica\u201c d.o.o Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje.<\/p>\n

RMU BANOVI\u0106I\u00a0dd operates large opencast mines at Grivice and \u010cubri\u0107, employing shovel dredgers and 170\u2011tonne trucks to mine a 17-metre seam, and has developed a third opencast mine at Turija. The company also operates one partly mechanised underground mine at Omazi\u0107i.\u00a0 In November 2015, RMU BANOVI\u0106I signed an agreement with DONGFANG ELECTRIC CORP to build a new power plant in Banovi\u0107i.\u00a0 The project includes a 350\u00a0MW lignite-fired unit with a Chinese-designed supercritical circulating fluidised bed.<\/p>\n

Coal mines situated in northeast and central Bosnia serve the Tuzla and Kakanj power plants owned and operated by ELEKTROPRIVREDA BiH.\u00a0 The Gacko coal mine and power plant in the south of the country and the Ugljevik coal mine and power plant in the east are operated by the state-owned ELEKTROPRIVREDA REPUBLIKE SRPSKE (EPRS).\u00a0 Other mines include Livno and Tu\u0161nica which supply the Ugljevik power plant as well as Kamengrad mine, although not all are in production.<\/p>\n

The 715\u00a0MW Tuzla power plant has three units and supplies heat to Tuzla and Lukavac as well as process steam to nearby industries, industrial water and fly ash to the cement works at Lukavac. \u00a0After the Bosnian war of 1992-95, major overhauls were completed at the plant, including boiler upgrades and the installation of new precipitators.\u00a0 The 450\u00a0MW Kakanj power plant has three units and was similarly reconstructed and modernised after the war. \u00a0In addition to the generation of electricity, the power plant supplies heat to the city of Kakanj as well as ash and slag to the Kakanj cement works.<\/p>\n

The Gacko and Ugljevik power plants, each of 300\u00a0MW, were commissioned in 1983 and 1985 respectively. \u00a0In July 2016, EPRS signed a FGD supply contract with MITSUBISHI HITACHI POWER SYSTEMS and RUDIS of Slovenia.\u00a0 The Ugljevik power plant is expected to re-start commercial operations in July 2019.<\/p>\n

A new 300\u00a0MW lignite-fired power plant came online in September 2016 at Stanari in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. \u00a0The plant was built by China\u2019s DONGFANG ELECTRIC CORPORATION and financed by the CHINA DEVELOPMENT BANK with a \u20ac350\u00a0million loan. \u00a0To supply the power plant, Stanari coal mine at Doboj, with reserves of 108\u00a0million tonnes, has increased its annual output capacity from 0.6\u00a0million tonnes to 2\u00a0million tonnes with a loan from SBERBANK of Russia. \u00a0FAM MAGDEBURGER supplied a new belt conveyor and a semi-mobile crusher.<\/p>\n

Looking to the future, seven new coal-fired power plant projects and coal mines, including rehabilitations and expansions, are being discussed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.<\/p>\n

\"croatia_round_icon_640\"Croatia<\/b> became the newest member state of the European Union on 1\u00a0July 2013.\u00a0 The country does not produce coal, but imported just over 1.0\u00a0million tonnes in 2015 mainly for use at the 335\u00a0MW Plomin power plant, 100% owned by HRVATSKA ELEKTROPRIVREDA.\u00a0 Coal accounted for 17% of total generation in 2014.\u00a0 At Plomin, a 500\u00a0MW unit\u00a0C will replace unit\u00a0A and thus increase the plant\u2019s overall capacity to 710\u00a0MW while reducing CO2<\/sub> emissions per unit of electricity generated by 22%.\u00a0 Contract negotiations began in September 2014 and an agreement with the preferred bidder, MARUBENI, was signed in February 2015.<\/p>\n

\"kosovo_round_icon_640\"Kosovo<\/b> is governed by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), following the violent conflict of 1996-99. \u00a0It has very large lignite resources, totalling 10.8\u00a0billion tonnes and fourth only to Poland, Germany and Serbia in Europe. \u00a0Reserves are located in the Kosova, Dukagjini, Drenica and Skenderaj basins, although mining has been limited to the Kosova basin to date. \u00a0Lignite production in 2015 was 8.4\u00a0million tonnes.<\/p>\n

For electricity, Kosovo was 96.9% dependent on lignite, with the rest coming from hydro plants and imports, including from a 32\u00a0MW hydro plant at Ujman\/Gazivoda and other smaller plants.<\/p>\n

The state-owned KORPORATA ENERGJETIKE E KOSOV\u00cbS (KEK) has a monopoly position in lignite mining and electricity generation.\u00a0 The Kosova\u00a0A (five units of which the 200\u00a0MW unit A3, 210\u00a0MW unit A4 and 210\u00a0MW unit A5 are operational) and Kosova\u00a0B (2\u00a0x\u00a0339\u00a0MW units) power plants near Pristina are supplied with lignite from Sibovc Southwest mine near Obiliq which opened in 2010.<\/p>\n

In December 2014, a bid for the new 500\u00a0MW \u201cKosova e Re\u201d thermal power plant (a.k.a. Kosovo\u00a0C) submitted by CONTOUR GLOBAL of the United States was opened by the Ministry of Economic Development. \u00a0This \u20ac1.5\u00a0billion project will replace Kosova\u00a0A and will, with the development of the Sibovc mine, create 10\u00a0000 jobs, improve the environment and end the electricity blackouts that plague the country.\u00a0 Construction is expected to start in 2017.<\/p>\n

\"macedonia_round_icon_640\"The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia<\/b> is a significant lignite producer: \u00a05.9\u00a0million tonnes in 2015 from the state-owned ELEM Suvodol and ELEM Oslomej surface mines and a number of smaller privately owned surface mines. \u00a0Coal resources are estimated at 2.5\u00a0billion tonnes in the Pelagonija and Kicevo basins, including deposits at Suvodol, Brod-Gneotino, Zhivojno, Oslomej, Popovjani and Stragomiste.\u00a0 Lignite from the Mariovo basin may be exploited to fuel a proposed new 300\u00a0MW power plant at Mariovo.<\/p>\n

The country also imports coal in small quantities, 280\u00a0thousand tonnes in 2015.\u00a0 Most coal and lignite is used for power generation which accounted for 69.6% of gross generation in 2014, mainly at the state-owned ELEM 675\u00a0MW Bitola and ELEM 125\u00a0MW Oslomej power plants. \u00a0The balance is used almost entirely by the steel industry, including the DOJRAN STEEL plant at Nikolic, DUFERCO MAKSTIL\u2019s integrated steel works at Skopje, and ARCELORMITTAL\u2019s steel mill, also at Skopje.<\/p>\n

\"montenegro_round_icon_640\"Montenegro <\/b>produced and consumed 1.8\u00a0million tonnes of brown coal in 2015, mostly for power generation \u2013 1.4\u00a0TWh in 2014 this being 44.8% of total generation.\u00a0 Hydro power supplied the remaining 55.2%. \u00a0Although not currently exploited, Montenegro has hard coal resources of 337\u00a0million tonnes.<\/p>\n

Montenegro\u2019s 220\u00a0MW Pljevlja coal-fired power plant, commissioned in 1982, is supplied with brown coal from two surface mines operated by RUDNIK UGLJA AD PLJEVLJA employing 1\u00a0053 people. \u00a0A \u20ac324.5\u00a0million contract to build a new 254\u00a0MW block was signed in September 2016 with the Czech engineering group SKODA PRAHA, a subsidiary of \u010cEZ.<\/p>\n

In 2014, METALFER acquired an underground coal mine at Berane which had been flooded and idle since 2005.\u00a0 Exploitable reserves are estimated at over 50\u00a0million tonnes of brown coal with a calorific value of 14\u00a0000-17\u00a0000\u00a0kJ\/kg. \u00a0In January 2015, commercial mining restarted at a depth of 200\u00a0metres, employing 140 people.<\/p>\n

\"sweden_round_icon_640\"Sweden<\/b><\/p>\n

There is currently no coal mining in Sweden and imported coal accounted for only 4.3% of the country\u2019s primary energy supply in 2015.\u00a0 Coal reserves and resources are estimated at 5\u00a0million tonnes in southern Sweden.\u00a0 In 2015, 420\u00a0thousand tonnes of peat were extracted.<\/p>\n

Since the mid-1990s, coal imports have been stable at close to 3\u00a0million tonnes per year (2.7\u00a0million tonnes in 2015).\u00a0 Demand for high-quality coking coal from Australia and the USA comes mainly from Sweden\u2019s speciality steel industry.\u00a0 Limited quantities of steam coal are used at combined heat and power plants in combination with biomass, including at FORTUM\u2019s clean and efficient V\u00e4rtan plant in Stockholm \u2013 site of the world\u2019s first commercial pressurised fluidised bed combustor. \u00a0Small quantities of coal are used in the pulp and paper industry which also relies heavily on biofuels.<\/p>\n

Almost half of Sweden\u2019s electricity demand is met by hydro power (46.1% in 2015) with nuclear power (34.8%) also being significant.\u00a0 The balance was met by wind power (10.3%) and CHP plants firing mainly solid wastes and biofuels (6.5%) and fossil fuels (2.2%).\u00a0 Wind and biomass are generously subsidised while nuclear and fossil fuels are heavily taxed.<\/p>\n

The role of nuclear power is again the subject of political discussions in Sweden.\u00a0 Following the 2014 election and to appease the junior coalition Green Party, the government appointed an energy commission to develop a long-term energy strategy with nuclear phase out.\u00a0 In June 2010, the parliament had agreed that new nuclear power plants could replace old ones at existing sites.\u00a0 After long negotiations, this policy was restated in a framework agreement of June 2016.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 2005 treaty establishing the Energy Community requires contracting parties to implement important parts of the EU acquis on energy markets and environmental protection.\u00a0 It provides for the creation of a single energy market and a mechanism for the operation of networks in the South East European region which disintegrated following the conflicts of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":776,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-806","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/806\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pipe.euracoal.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}