Soga power station
{{#badges:CoalSwarm|Navbar-Japanandcoal}} Soga power station, also known as JFE Steel power station, is a proposed 1,070-megawatt (MW) coal plant at the site of an old JFE Steel factory in Chiba, Japan.
Plans for the project were cancelled in 2018. Project proponents are instead exploring plans for a gas plant.
Contents
Location
The map below shows the city of Chiba, the approximate location where the plant would be built.
Background
Chugoku Electric Power, JFE Steel Corporation, and Tokyo Gas have proposed a 1,070 MW ultra-supercritical power station at the site of JFE's old steel factory in the Chuo ward of Chiba. Chugoku Electric Power and JFE Steel plan to sell the power to TEPCO, and Tokyo Gas plans to sell the rest to the Kanto area.[1]
As of 2017 the EIA process was underway. The power station is planned for operation in 2024.[2]
In December 2018, Chugoku Electric Power and JFE Steel announced the cancellation of the coal plant, saying they will instead consider project feasibility for joint construction of a natural gas thermal power plant. The cancellation followed sustained public protest of the plant, including opposition by Japan's Environment Minister.[3]
Public opposition
In March 2017 Japan's Environment Minister Koichi Yamamoto expressed concern that building the plant would harm Japan's efforts to reduce carbon emissions as part of its commitment to the Paris climate accords of 2015.[5]
In October 2017 local residents and Friends of the Earth Japan protested the construction of the new Soga plant. According to Friends of the Earth: "Public facilities such as schools and athletic grounds are located within a 5km radius of the planned construction site. If a coal power plant is constructed and begins operations, additional concerns will be raised on the effects of air pollution on local residents. The planned construction site is in an area which experiences environmental improvement after the court rulings during the Aozora Trials. After such victory and consequential improvement, there is a possibility that this land may be contaminated again with pollution if the new coal power plant is constructed.[4]
Project Details
- Sponsor: Chiba Power
- Parent Company: Chugoku Electric Power, JFE Holdings
- Location: Chuo ward, Chiba city, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
- Coordinates: 35.605, 140.123333 (approximate)
- Status: Cancelled
- Capacity: 1,070 MW
- Type: Ultra-supercritical
- Start date:
- Coal Type:
- Coal Source:
- Source of financing:
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ "中国電、首都圏で火力発電所 ＪＦＥ・東ガスと," Nikkei, 2014/4/27
- ↑ "蘇我火力発電所," Kiko Network, accessed May 2017
- ↑ "Proponents Cancel Plan for Largest Coal Power Plant in Tokyo Bay: Citizens’ Groups Welcome the Decision, but 34 Coal Power Projects Still Remain," Kiko Network, December 27, 2018
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Soga needs no coal power plants, Friends of the Earth Japan, October 16, 2017
- ↑ Japan's environment minister sees business risk in building new coal-fired plant, Reuters, Mar. 10, 2017
