The unmanaged, heavily subsidized growth of renewables and the resulting collapse of the EU emissions trading scheme are rendering in particular gas-fired power plants in Europe—which have already been hit by the recession-driven decline in power demand—largely uneconomic to operate. As announced at the beginning of this year, E.ON is restructuring its conventional generation fleet in ways that will swiftly improve the fleet’s competitiveness. Alongside further cost reductions and efficiency improvements, E.ON is studying whether to close a number of its power plants in Europe and will take decisive action in cases where closing proves necessary.
E.ON’s Malženice CCGT, which has a gross generating capacity of 430 MW, entered service in January 2011. In the past two and a half years it has only operated for about 5,600 hours. The unit, whose fuel efficiency exceeds 58 percent, was planned to operate at least 4,000 to 5,000 hours per year.
