Vattenfall - Improve the efficiency of existing power plants

Improve the efficiency of existing power plants, especially those using fossil fuels

Vattenfall has launched a massive investment program that aims at substantially increasing the efficiency in its hydropower plants and nuclear power plants.

Moreover, during the past ten years, the coal-fired power plants now owned by Vattenfall have been extensively modernised, with good economic and environmental results. Compared with 1990, specific carbon dioxide emissions from total Vattenfall power and heat generation plants have decreased by about 30 percent (for a given amount of energy delivered).

Major investments in biofuel-based generation

Vattenfall has some 30 biofuel-fired heat and combined heat and power (CHP) generation plants and is thus one of the world’s largest buyers and users of biofuels. Biofuel-fired plants account for a steadily growing share of total Vattenfall energy generation. In Sweden and Finland, plants are being continuously upgraded to accommodate a greater share of biofuel and a lower share of fossil fuels. In Germany and Poland, work is in progress on upgrading old plants in order to change the fuel mix and achieve a higher share of renewable fuel. The Zerán plant in Warsaw, Poland, is a prime example, where coal and biofuel are used in parallel with successful results. In Denmark, investments are being made in the Fynsverket and Amagerverket stations to accommodate combustion of a higher proportion of hay. Vattenfall is also making major new investments in the field of biofuels. In Hamburg, Vattenfall has built a CHP plant based on recycled timber and demolition timber, while in the German town of Sellessen, near Cottbus, and in the Swedish town of Motala, CHP plants based on biofuels have been commissioned.

More efficient hydro power

Vattenfall has more than a hundred hydro power plants in the Nordic countries – mostly in Sweden – which generate roughly 33 TWh of electricity in a normal year. Many Vattenfall hydropower plants have provided a wealth of knowledge about how hydropower can be generated with minimum environmental impact and how new research findings and technological solutions can be used to improve the efficiency of today’s hydropower plants. Vattenfall invests heavily in hydro power. The goal of these investments is to secure generation over the long term, improve environmental aspects, lower maintenance costs and increase the output. In Germany, Vattenfall operates six hydro power plants and eight pumped storage power plants. The latter are used to store energy in order to even out generation between periods of low and high consumption. They are important tools for balancing the irregular input of wind power into the electricity grid.