The UK Government has set October 2025 as the date by which all UK coal power stations will be forced to close, unless the plants are fitted with carbon capture technology.
Currently the UK has eight remaining coal power stations, one of which is expected to cease operating later this year.
Phasing out coal use is one of the Conservative party's flagship green policies set to address new pollution standards. However despite closing existing power plants the plan also reveals that the sector will continue to be supported by hundreds of millions of pounds in backup power subsidies for several years, which will be paid through consumer energy bills.
Calls by campaigners to move the 2025 deadline forward have been rejected by government due to cost and energy security issues.
There is a possibility that some coal power plants could remain past the 2025 date, but only if they comply with standards on emission limits. Carbon plants will only be permitted to emit 450g CO2 per kW hour. In order to meet this limit coal plants would have to be fitted with carbon capture equipment. It is unknown whether this will be a route taken by the power plants due to the cost involved in such equipment.
The 2025 phase out plan has been welcomed by Greenpeace, which described it as: "significant progress on making coal history in the birthplace of the industrial revolution."
However, ClientEarth aired caution over coal being replaced with another fossil fuel: "We are concerned that the door is left wide open for investments in new, long-term gas capacity, locking us into another generation of fossil fuel power."
