Esbjerg coal plant. Image credit: Ørsted
Danish authorities have ordered Ørsted to continue and resume operations of three of its oil- and coal-fired power station units in order to ensure security of supply in Denmark.
The order is in response to the current energy supply crisis in Europe, resulting from Russian gas curtailment.
The Danish energy firm will be recommissioning unit 3 at Esbjerg Power Station (370MW) and unit 4 at Studstrup Power Station (360MW), which both use coal, as well as unit 21 at Kyndby Peak Load Plant (260MW), which uses oil as fuel.
Studstrup and Kyndby are fully decommissioned and Esbjerg Power Station was scheduled to be decommissioned on 31 March 2023.
Mads Nipper, CEO of Ørsted, said in a statement: “In order to ensure the security of the electricity supply, the Danish authorities have today ordered us to continue as well as resume operations at some of our oil- and coal-fired power stations.
“We will, of course, comply with the Danish authorities’ order, and we’ll now begin preparing and maintaining the units as well as securing the staffing necessary to operate them.
“We still believe that we, as a society, must phase out the use of gas, oil and coal as soon as possible, but we’re in the middle of a European energy crisis, and we will, of course, contribute to ensuring the electricity supply to the best of our ability.”
Despite the urgent need to secure power supply in time for the coming winter months, Ørsted expects that it will take time to get everything in place.
The energy firm confirmed that a number of technical challenges need to be addressed. Highly specialised workers must be trained to operate the power stations and a great deal of maintenance will be required at all three units to prepare them for operation.
Despite the Danish authorities ordering the three units to be kept operational until 30 June 2024, Ørsted remains committed to its sustainability targets.
