Polish energy companies Enea and Energa late on May 19 announced they were ending their involvement with construction of the Ostroleka C coal-fired power plant, after new co-owner PKN Orlen said it would not be involved in the project if it utilizes coal.
PKN Orlen, a Poland state-owned energy company that recently acquired Energa, said it would only be involved if the 1-GW project were pursued as a gas-fired plant. PKN Orlen announced its acquisition of Energa in December 2019, and at the time the company—Poland’s biggest oil refiner—said it might convert Ostroleka C to generate power with natural gas.Enea and Energa said they each would take a write-down of PLN 0.5 billion (about $121 million U.S.) for pulling out of the project. General Electric (GE) has served as the lead contractor for the plant’s construction.
The Ostroleka C plant has struggled to find financial support and has been criticized by several groups who cautioned it could not be financially viable using coal for power generation. Enea and Energa in February said they would suspend their financing of the project, presumably with the hope of finding outside investors to help finish construction.