RWE has cancelled plans for a new coal-fired power plant in Germany and will focus on electricity generation from renewable energy sources instead.
The company said it will no longer invest in new coal-fired power stations, after cancelling the lignite BOAplus project at the company’s site in Niederaussem.
BOAplus was an option to replace existing units with a new, more efficient power plant, RWE said.
“Its implementation was subject to market conditions, which did not allow for the project to be realised in the last years,” it added.
RWE chief executive Rolf Martin Schmitz (pictured) said: “We are aware of our responsibility and continue to drive the energy transition with resolve.
“New coal-fired power stations no longer have a place in our future-oriented strategy. Following the completion of the transaction with Eon, RWE will be one of the world’s leading renewable energy players.”
However, the company added that, given the fact that renewables currently contribute about 40% to the German electricity mix, it is “convinced that existing coal-fired power stations will be needed to provide backup capacity, although their share in the electricity mix will decline gradually”.
RWE said new power stations and storage will be required in order to ensure long-term security of supply for Germany.
“To this end, the company will invest in renewable energies, storage technologies and low-carbon technologies, such as gas-fired power stations, if market conditions allow for it,” the company said.