Opatovice Power Plant aims to take delivery of its first CCGT unit at the end of next year

Opatovice Power Plant aims to take delivery of the first of three planned combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) units at the end of next year. They will gradually replace the existing coal-fired boilers without jeopardising reliable heat and electricity supplies for the region. A new amendment to the integrated permit, issued by the Pardubice Region, stipulates that one coal-fired boiler will always be shut down when each CCGT unit enters permanent operation, the plant's spokesperson Hana Počtová told ČTK.

"The current project schedule envisages the handover of the first unit at the end of 2027, the second in the first quarter of 2028 and the third in the second quarter of 2028," Počtová said.

Each of the three new units is designed as a flexible energy source. In their main operating mode, they will simultaneously generate electricity and heat: natural gas will drive a gas turbine producing electricity, while the energy contained in the flue gases will subsequently be used to produce steam for heat supply and further electricity generation. This operating mode is the most efficient. If necessary, the gas turbine alone can be operated, enabling rapid ramp-up of electrical output and a flexible response to the needs of the power system. The third mode is standalone operation of the heat recovery steam generator, which will produce steam without operating the gas turbine.

"Thanks to this flexibility, it will be possible to respond better both to the current needs of heat customers and to changes in electricity demand and the needs of the power system. Each of the new CCGT units will therefore be capable of generating both electricity and heat, with the electrical output of each gas turbine reaching approximately 60 megawatts (MW)," Počtová said.

Total costs of the gas conversion will exceed ten billion Czech crowns. To finance the project, the power plant will use a combination of its own funds, a bank loan and a subsidy of approximately 4.3 billion Czech crowns from the Modernisation Fund.

In addition to the CCGT units, the power plant is also preparing to build a municipal waste incineration plant. The waste-to-energy facility (ZEVO), together with natural gas, will make it possible to replace most coal-based energy generation in the future. The company is also preparing other modern energy solutions, such as battery energy storage, the use of heat pumps and an assessment of geothermal energy potential. The company welcomes the European Commission's proposal for the free allocation of emissions allowances beyond 2030, although much will depend on its final form.

The Opatovice power plant was completed in 1960. It is owned, through its subsidiary EP Energy, by Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH), controlled by billionaire Daniel Křetínský. It has a sister company, EOP Distribuce. Both companies were created at the beginning of 2022 through the split of the original Elektrárny Opatovice company. Through a network approximately 320 kilometres long, they supply heat to more than 63.000 households and hundreds of other customers in the Hradec Králové–Pardubice–Chrudim agglomeration.