German power utility Uniper’s new Datteln 4 coal-fired power station will begin operating on May 30, it said on Tuesday.
The 1,050 megawatt (MW) plant that has cost Uniper 1.5 billion euros was granted an exemption from Germany’s plan to exit coal power by 2038 after the company argued that it made more sense to shut old capacity with high CO2 emissions to clear the way for state-of-the-art Datteln to operate into the 2030s.
Environmentalists have criticised the compromise, saying the government lacked ambition and allowed coal operators to get off lightly.