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Didcot power station is an operating power station of at least 1590-megawatts (MW) in Didcot, South Oxfordshire, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Didcot power station | Didcot, South Oxfordshire, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom | 51.622252, -1.260853 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Didcot-A: Unit 1, Didcot-A: Unit 2, Didcot-A: Unit 3, Didcot-A: Unit 4: 51.622252, -1.260853
- Unit 5, Unit 6, Unit GT: 51.6246, -1.2683
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Didcot-A: Unit 1 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 1 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 2 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 2 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 3 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 3 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 4 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Didcot-A: Unit 4 | retired | coal - bituminous, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids), fossil gas - natural gas | 543 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2013 |
| Unit 5 | operating[1] | gas[2][3] | 780[2] | combined cycle[4] | no | 1998[4] | 2024 (planned) |
| Unit 6 | operating[1] | gas[2][3] | 710[2] | combined cycle[4] | no | 1998[4] | 2024 (planned) |
| Unit GT | operating[1] | gas[1] | 100[2] | combined cycle[4] | no | 1972[1] | 2024 (planned) |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Didcot-A: Unit 1 | RWE Generation SE [100.0%] | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 1 | – | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 2 | RWE Generation SE [100.0%] | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 2 | – | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 3 | RWE Generation SE [100.0%] | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 3 | – | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 4 | RWE Generation SE [100.0%] | – |
| Didcot-A: Unit 4 | – | – |
| Unit 5 | RWE Generation UK plc[5] | RWE Aktiengesellschaft [100.0%] |
| Unit 6 | RWE Generation UK plc[5] | RWE Aktiengesellschaft [100.0%] |
| Unit GT | RWE Generation UK plc[5] | RWE Aktiengesellschaft [100.0%] |
Unit-level fuel conversion details:
Didcot-A: Unit 3: Unknown or atypical conversion status Didcot-A: Unit 1: Unknown or atypical conversion status Didcot-A: Unit 2: Unknown or atypical conversion status Didcot-A: Unit 4: Unknown or atypical conversion status
Didcot-A
A vote was held in Didcot and surrounding villages on whether Didcot-A should be built. There was strong opposition from Sutton Courtenay but the yes vote was carried, due to the number of jobs that would be created in the area. Building was started during 1964, and was completed in 1970 at a cost of £104m, with up to 2400 workers being employed at peak times.
The 4 x 480 MW power station burns mostly coal, but also co-fires with natural gas. Didcot was the first large power station to be converted to have this function. In addition, a small amount of biomass, such as sawdust, is now burnt at the plant. This was introduced to try to depend more on renewable sources following the introduction of the Kyoto Protocol and, in April 2002, the Renewables Obligation. It is hoped that biomass could replace 2% of coal burnt. Between 2005 and 2007 Didcot installed overfire air systems on the four boilers to reduce emissions of Nitrous Oxide.This ensured compliance with the European Union Large Combustion Plant Directive.
Some ash from Didcot-A is used to manufacture building blocks at a factory on the adjacent Milton Park and transported to Thatcham (near Newbury, Berkshire) for the manufacture of Thermalite aerated breeze blocks using both decarbonized fly and raw ash, but most is mixed with water and pumped via a pipeline to former quarries in Radley.
Protests
October 26-29, 2009: Twenty arrested at Didcot-A power station
On October 26, 2009, nine climate change protesters climbed the chimney, and eleven chained themselves to the coal delivery conveyors; the latter group were cut free by police after five hours, but the former waited until October 28 before coming down again — all twenty were arrested, and power supplies continued uninterrupted. The power station was installing improved security fencing at the time.[6] The action was intended to draw attention to the plans of RWE Group to build as many as 30 new coal-fired power stations across Europe, including two in Britain. The group took over a room at the power station and pitched tents on top of a chimney tents. Two specialist climbers entered the chimney flues, intending to remain for a week in order to prevent the plant from restarting; however, after encountering hot conditions, they were unable to stay. At 4 a.m. on October 29, the group voluntarily came down from the chimney and were arrested. The group had met at Climate Camp in London.[7]
November 2, 2006: Greenpeace protest
On the morning of Thursday 2 November 2006, 30 Greenpeace volunteers invaded the power station. One group chained themselves to a broken coal-carrying conveyor belt. A second group scaled the 200 metre high chimney, and set up a 'climate camp'. They proceeded to paint "Blair's Legacy" on the side of the chimney overlooking the town. Greenpeace claims Didcot Power Station is the second most polluting in Britain after Drax in Yorkshire,[8] whilst Friends of the Earth describe it as the ninth worst in the UK.[9]
Retirement scheduled for 2013
In 2012, RWE nPower said it will close two power plants at the end of March 2013 to meet the conditions of the European Union Large Combustion Plant Directive: the Didcot-A Power Station and the 1,000 MW Fawley oil-fired power station, both in the south of England.[10]
On March 22 2013 RWE announced that the plant had been disconnected from the grid after having run for its total entitlement of 20,000 hours after opting out of the EU Large Combustion Directive.[11][12]
Didcot-B
Under the EU's Industrial Emissions Directive (still effective after the United Kingdom left the EU[13]), plants not meeting pollution limits would have to perform upgrades or opt-out and retire by 2023. Didcot B opted out and will have to close in 2023.[14]
However, in 2021 the project applied for 1,550 MW existing generation (units 5 and 6) in the T-4 Capacity Market 2024-2025 auction, and they were listed in the final results.[15][16] This would qualify them for government subsidies to guarantee electricity supply.[17]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 https://web.archive.org/web/20231018084610/https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/digest-of-uk-energy-statistics-dukes-2023. Archived from the original on 18 October 2023.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 https://web.archive.org/web/20240124172603/https://transparency.entsoe.eu/. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220709031814/https://uk-ireland.rwe.com/locations/didcot-b-ccgt-power-plant. Archived from the original on 09 July 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 https://web.archive.org/web/20221108073105/https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/digest-of-uk-energy-statistics-dukes. Archived from the original on 08 November 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 https://web.archive.org/web/20210619181237/https://www.group.rwe/en/our-portfolio/our-sites. Archived from the original on 19 June 2021.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Sloan, Liam (29 October 2009). "Didcot tower is 'taken'". The Oxford Times. Oxford: Newsquest (Oxfordshire) Ltd: 3.
- ↑ David Adam, "Didcot power station protest ends with arrests," The Guardian, October 28, 2009
- ↑ "Climate campaigners shut down one of UK's biggest power stations". Greenpeace. Retrieved 2006-11-02.
- ↑ "Carbon Dinosaurs". Friends of the Earth. Archived from the original on 2004-10-19.
- ↑ "German utility to close 2 highly polluting power plants in U.K.," Reuters, Sep. 18, 2012.
- ↑ "Powering the nation for 43 years – farewell from Didcot A Power Station", RWE npower, Media Release, March 22, 2013.
- ↑ Graham Thompson,"Blair's legacy to be demolished", Greenpeace UK, March 22, 2013.
- ↑ Industrial emissions standards and best available techniques, UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Dec 31, 2020
- ↑ Energy Trends 2015-2016, United Kingdom, Sep 2015
- ↑ T4 DY2024-25 Final Results, Electricity Market Reform Delivery Body, Mar 22, 2021
- ↑ Capacity Market Register 2024-25 (T-4) - 13_04_2021, Electricity Market Reform Delivery Body, Apr 13, 2021
- ↑ Capacity Market, United Kingdom, Mar 1, 2019
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
