Monfalcone power station
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Monfalcone power station is an operating power station of at least 672-megawatts (MW) in Monfalcone, Gorizia, Italy with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Monfalcone power station | Monfalcone, Gorizia, Italy | 45.7979, 13.5455 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 2, Unit 5, Unit CC1: 45.7979, 13.5455
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | operating | coal - bituminous, fossil liquids - fuel oil, bioenergy - unknown | 165 | subcritical | – | 1965 | 2022 (planned) |
| Unit 1 | operating | fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - bituminous, bioenergy - unknown | 165 | subcritical | – | 1965 | 2022 (planned) |
| Unit 2 | operating | coal - bituminous, fossil liquids - fuel oil, bioenergy - unknown | 171 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2022 (planned) |
| Unit 2 | operating | fossil liquids - fuel oil, coal - bituminous, bioenergy - unknown | 171 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2022 (planned) |
| Unit 5 | cancelled | coal - bituminous | 340 | supercritical | – | – | – |
| Unit CC1 | announced[1][2] | gas, hydrogen[3] | 860[4] | combined cycle[3] | not found | 2024[4][5] | – |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | A2A SpA [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 1 | – | – |
| Unit 2 | A2A SpA [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 2 | – | – |
| Unit 5 | A2A SpA [100.0%] | – |
| Unit CC1 | A2A SpA[4][6] | A2A SpA [100.0%] |
Background
The A2A Monfalcone plant has been operating since 1965, when the first 165 MW coal-fired unit came online. An additional 171 MW coal-fired unit was added in 1970, followed by two 320 MW units powered by fuel oil in 1983 and 1984.[7][8][9][10]
Conversion plans
In 2021, A2A announced that they would be decommissioning the coal units by 2022 and replacing them with combined-cycle natural gas units, with a hydrogen fuel mix.[11]
The project was given a favorable decree by the Ministero Della Transizione Ecologica in September 2021.[12][13]
At the same time, the coal plant appears to be authorized for operation by the Integrated Environmental Authorization of March 24, 2009 (AIA then updated to take into account the commissioning of the new DeNOx, as well as the demolition of the fuel oil tanks), which is valid until March 2025. In agreement with the strategic lines of the Regional Energy Plan approved by the FVG Region (June 2015), the manager was undertaking the site reconversion plan "which includes a gradual decrease in the use of coal as a primary fuel for the production of electricity and its replacement with alternative energy sources to be identified within the renewable energy sector" (Google Translate).[14]
Though originally slated for retirement in 2022, the plant's life was extended in light of the war in Ukraine.[15]
According to reporting from March and April 2023, Italy's Ministry for the Environment and Energy Security and A2A had agreed that the power station’s coal-fired units would stop continuous operation and be used only for "energy crises."[16][17][18] This decision followed an agreement reached earlier in March between A2A and the Monfalcone regional council to begin procedures to close the coal-fired units.[19]
In June 2023, the Environment and Energy Security Minister reportedly stated that the country's coal plants could close by 2024, a year earlier than previously planned, if gas prices remained low.[20]
In July 2023, the Environment and Energy Security Minister asked grid operator Terna to stop electricity production from the Monfalcone power station and to minimize production from other coal-fired plants, as the "emergency on gas supplies...had ended."[21][22]
Proposed unit
In November 2012, three months prior to the scheduled dismantling of Monfalcone's two fuel oil units, representatives of plant operator A2A presented Monfalcone's city government with a preliminary study for a new, more efficient 340 MW coal-fired plant to replace the plant's two original units. A2A estimated that the new plant would operate at an average efficiency of 46% and would produce 80% fewer emissions than the current coal-fired units. The company stressed that the plan was still in its preliminary stages, with many technical and financial details still to be worked out. Once initiated, the project was expected to be completed within five years.[23]
The company also proposed replacing the fuel units with a natural gas plant, to run alongside the existing coal unit.[8]
As of 2016, coal plans appeared deferred or abandoned.
Opposition
During the 2012 meeting between A2A and the city council, protestors outside Monfalcone's city hall held up signs reading "Coal is never clean".[23]
Following meetings in 2020 about converting the site to a gas plant there was local opposition to the continued use of fossil fuels.[24]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220709011708/https://www.proiter.it/en/monfalcone-thermoelectric-power-plant.html. Archived from the original on 09 July 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20231011131319/https://hydronews.it/al-via-la-riconversione-della-centrale-di-monfalcone-dal-carbone-si-passa-al-gas-in-mix-con-lidrogeno/. Archived from the original on 11 October 2023.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20210407184057/https://nordesteconomia.gelocal.it/imprese/2021/01/21/news/monfalcone-la-sfida-verde-di-a2a-puntare-sull-idrogeno-cresciamo-in-europa-1.39800998. Archived from the original on 07 April 2021.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 https://web.archive.org/web/20221005133002/https://www.rainews.it/tgr/fvg/articoli/2021/09/fvg-trasformazione-centrale-a2a-monfalcone-a7a36edb-47db-4c17-b9f5-0732d8c34e02.html. Archived from the original on 05 October 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20221205003529/https://www.changeclimatechange.it/azioni/nemici/centrale-a-carbone-di-monfalcone/. Archived from the original on 05 December 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220926024754/https://www.gruppoa2a.it/it/chi-siamo/nostri-impianti/termoelettrici/centrale-monfalcone. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "A2A Monfalcone Coal Power Plant Italy,", Global Energy Observatory website, accessed April 2014.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "The Monfalcone Thermoelectric Plant,", A2A website, accessed April 2014.
- ↑ "Coal-Fired Power Plants in Italy," Industcards, accessed April 2016
- ↑ "A2A Energiefuture - Centrale termoelettrica di Monfalcone". www.a2aenergiefuture.eu. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- ↑ "Monfalcone strategica: A2A dà l'addio al carbone nel 2022 con un riassetto da 400 milioni," Nordest Economia, January 21, 2021
- ↑ "Progetto di modifica della centrale termoelettrica di Monfalcone (GO) - Documentazione - Valutazioni e Autorizzazioni Ambientali - VAS - VIA - AIA". va.minambiente.it. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- ↑ "Via libera da Roma alla riconversione della centrale A2A di Monfalcone - TGR Friuli Venezia Giulia". TGR. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- ↑ "Centrale Di Monfalcone," A2A, accessed January 2022
- ↑ "La centrale A2A di Monfalcone pronta a ripartire con il carbone, l’allarme di Legambiente," Friulioggi, March 1, 2022
- ↑ "Centrale Monfalcone, stop al carbone," Telefriuli, March 29, 2023
- ↑ "Monfalcone, siglato l’accordo tra Ministero e A2A per lo stop immediato del carbone," IL Piccolo, April 1, 2023
- ↑ "Proroga del carbone, Monfalcone non riaccende la centrale," IL Piccolo, April 11, 2023
- ↑ "Carbone addio nella centrale A2A di Monfalcone, ecco il piano da 60 milioni," IL Goriziano, March 3, 2023
- ↑ "Italy could abandon coal by 2024, environment minister says," Reuters, June 5, 2023
- ↑ "Pichetto signs the guidelines for minimizing the energy of coal-fired plants," NOVA.news, July 5, 2023
- ↑ "Stop carbone nella centrale A2A di Monfalcone, ok del ministro Fratin," IL Goriziano, July 6, 2023
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 "A2a svela in aula i piani per la centrale di Monfalcone," Il Piccolo, November 21, 2012
- ↑ "Legambiente boccia la costruzione di una centrale a gas di Monfalcone," Telefriuli, November 23, 2020
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.
