Eskom 'committed' to reducing CO2 footprint

2008-09-05 13:47

Cape Town - Electricity supplier Eskom says it is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, but the amount of carbon dioxide the utility released into the atmosphere last year increased to 223.6 million tons.

"There was an increase in the level of CO2 emission from 208.9 million tons (2007) to 223.6 million tons (2008)," it says in its annual report tabled at Parliament.

The 2008 report covers the 12 months up to March 31 this year.

Eskom says the increase in CO2 was mainly due to the increased quantities of coal burnt and electricity produced, and a reduction in "our average coal calorific value and an overall drop in the thermal efficiency of our power stations".

Other gaseous emissions also rose, including nitrous oxide (from 2.7 to 2.9 kilotons), sulphur dioxide (from 1875.7 to 1949.7 kilotons) and nitrogen oxide (from 929.9 to 983.9 kilotons).

So too did the utility's particulate emissions, from 0.20kg/MWh in 2007, to 0.21kg/MWh in 2008, although Eskom says it achieved its "target" in this regard.

Clean coal technologies?

The utility says it plans to reduce the coal component of its generating capacity to 70% within the next 20 years.

"Clean coal technologies that use coal for power generation in more environmentally acceptable and economically viable ways will form part of the [generating] mix."

However, these so-called clean coal technologies - including flue gas de-nitrification and de-nitrification systems - have "not been installed at any of the current power stations".

The report says Eskom's climate change strategy "contains our commitment to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions". But a reduction in the actual tons of CO2 emitted - which is projected to increase each year for the next 17 years - will not happen before 2025.

"Although the amount of CO2 that we emit will increase in the short to medium-term, we are committed to assessing options to retard that rate of increase and, ultimately, begin to decrease it.

"Our intent, therefore, is to reduce our relative CO2... footprint until 2025, and, thereafter, to continually reduce absolute emissions in support of national and global targets," the report says.

According to figures included in the report, the introduction of more nuclear power stations will limit CO2 emissions to just over 350 million tons a year by 2025.

But if coal-fired technology remains at a high percentage of the energy mix (90%), then "emissions from electricity generation would more than double over the next 20 years".

According to a projection in the report, such a scenario would push CO2 emissions to more than 450 million tons a year.

- SAPA