Fiume Santo power station

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Fiume Santo Power Station is a 650-megawatt (MW) thermoelectric power plant in the north west of Sardinia, Italy.

Location

The undated satellite photo below shows the plant, which is near Porto Torres, Sassari province.

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Background

The Fiume Santo Power station was originally set up in 1960s to supply electricity to Sardinia and other areas. The plant has two coal-fired units, and two decommissioned fuel oil units. The two coal-fed units came into production in 1992-93 and have rated power of 320 MW to 330 MW each. The two fuel oil units came on line at the end of 2005 with a generating capacity of 40MW each. The fuel oil units were shut down in December 2013 and are currently being decommissioned.

Proposed unit 5

A new coal-fired unit for Fiume Santo was proposed in 2006. In 2012, the company described its plans as follows:

E.ON filed an application in January 2006, seeking permission to build a new 410MW coal group in the Fiume Santo plant. The unit was planned with a new conception called ‘Ultra super critical cycle’ to replace the two fuel oil fed groups of the station. The company applied seeking the permission of the VIA Commission (The National Environmental Impact Assessment Commission) before starting the replacement process. On 4 December, 2008 it received a favourable environmental impact assessment. The new coal group unit is expected to be operational from 2014. In addition, E.ON is also considering the use of biomass in co-combustion in the existing coal sections. The company has already submitted an application to the respective authorities and is awaiting the permit.

In mid-2013, E.ON announced that it had shelved its plans for the fifth unit at Fiume Santo. However, the Sardinian regional government remained interested in developing a high-efficiency coal plant in northern Sardinia, and held talks in August 2013 with China Environmental Holding and Nord Sardegna Energia to evaluate a possible alternative project.

In September 2013, the Italian Ministry of Economic Development announced it would grant E.ON a 15-month extension, allowing construction of the fifth unit to begin any time before December 2014.

E.ON sells Italian holdings

In November 2013, E.ON announced that it was selling all of its Italian holdings, including the Fiume Santo plant. Initial speculation about possible buyers for the plant centered on the multinational energy giant Edison, the Chinese companies China Environmental Energy Holding e Shenzhen Energy Group, and the Sardinian-based Ottana Energia and Idro di Terni.. News reports in January 2014 indicated that GDF Suez Energy might also be interested in acquiring E.ON's Italian assets, but future construction at Fiume Santo appears extremely unlikely unless E.ON can find a buyer before the end of 2014.

E.ON announced 65 layoffs at the Fiume Santo plant in March 2014, provoking fears among workers that the entire plant might be closed by the end of the year. In response to the layoffs, workers held a series of protest blockades at the plant entrance in March and April 2014.

In January 2015 E.ON announced it had sold its Italian coal and gas generation assets, including the 600 MW Fiume Santo Power Station, to Czech energy company Energetický a Průmyslový Holding (EPH).

In 2016 the project was formally cancelled.

Project Details

• Sponsor: Energetický a Průmyslový Holding (EPH)
• Parent company:
• Location: Porto Torres, Sassari province, Sardinia, Italy
• Coordinates: 40.8461, 8.3068 (exact)
• Status:
  • Unit 1: Operating (1992)
  • Unit 2: Operating (1993)
  • Unit 3 (fuel oil): Commissioned (2005); Decommissioned (2013)
  • Unit 4 (fuel oil): Commissioned (2005); Decommissioned (2013)
  • Unit 5: Cancelled
• Gross Capacity:
  • Unit 1: 330 MW
  • Unit 2: 320 MW
  • Unit 3: 40 MW
  • Unit 4: 40 MW
  • Unit 5: 410 MW
• Type: Supercritical (Unit 5)
• Projected in service:
• Coal Type: hard coal
• Coal Source:
• Source of financing:

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