The recently elected government of the Czech Republic has pledged to phase out coal from the nation's energy mix by 2033, replacing the lost power output by ramping up renewable and nuclear energy production.
Coal Fired Power Plant in Ledvice in Czech Republic. Credit: Dynamoland / Shutterstock.
Coal-Fired Power Plant in Ledvice in Czech Republic. Credit: Dynamoland / Shutterstock.
The Czech Republic has long been reliant on coal, the most polluting fossil fuel which currently, still accounts for nearly half the country's energy production.
The proposed replacement, nuclear accounts for around 33% of its energy needs, produced by six nuclear reactors in two plants to produce around 33% of its energy needs.
The new centre-right coalition government headed by Petr Fiala, beat the incumbent Prime Minister and populist billionaire Andrej Babiš in elections last October.
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"We will create such conditions for the energy transformation and development of coal regions to make it possible to phase out coal by the year 2033," said Fiala.
Several other countries in the EU, such as Finland and Spain have pledged to end the use of coal-fired power plants by 2030, with the UK planning to phase it out by 2025.
Even some of the country's more coal-reliant neighbours have announced dates to end the use of the fossil fuel in its energy mix. In November, the new coalition government in Germany, which has long been reliant on coal, vowed to bring forward its end to 2030 - eight years ahead of the date set by the previous chancellor Angela Merkel.
In April 2021, the government in Poland, which is dependent on fossil fuels for around 70% of its energy needs, signed a long-negotiated agreement with trade unions to phase out coal by 2049.
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The plans have been met with criticism by environmental activists, who argue that the 2033 date is too slow and that the phase-out needs to happen faster.
Mahi Sideridou, Managing Director of Europe Beyond Coal, said: "It’s momentous that the Czech government understands that we are in the end game for European coal, but its 2033 coal phase-out commitment means it’s getting off on the wrong foot.
"The Czech government knows all too well that climate science tells us that European countries need to phase out coal by 2030. It must accelerate the plan."
In 2020, the previous Czech government launched a coal commission, which set out three different timetables for the phase-out, in 2033, 2038 and 2043, before officially recommending the 2038 plan.
However, the commission's methodology has also been criticised. Europe Beyond Coal claims that each of the three scenarios was modelled on an emissions trading price of €30 per tonne, even though prices are already above €80 per tonne presently.
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"We see country-level coal exit plans accelerating across Europe and believe that the Czech Republic will phase out coal before 2030 in the end like the other responsible and developed European countries," said Lukáš Hrábek, press officer at Greenpeace Czech Republic.
"Even the inadequate coal phase-out date in 2033 sends a clear signal to Czech energy industry that the plans to expand Bílina mine or to retrofit old coal power plants have to be abandoned now."
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