EnBW plans to shut down 4 power units and to mothball one (Germany)

EnBW plans to shut down a total of 4 power plant units at its power plant locations in Marbach and Walheim.

The heating oil-fired co-generation unit III and gas turbine III at the 360 MW Marbach site and hard coal power stations 1 and 2 in Walheim (107 MW and 160 MW, respectively) are to be shut down at the earliest legally possible date. This represents a final shutdown of the plants in the meaning of the German Energy Industry Act (EnWG) and the German Reserve Power Plant Directive (ResKV).

EnBW is also in discussions with the Federal Network Agency concerning the relatively new and flexibly deployable RDK 4 gas and steam turbine power plant in Karlsruhe. 363 MW RDK 4 is currently hardly being utilised, and is consequently also unable to cover its full costs. As far as potential changes to market design are concerned, the potential of a later recommissioning is to be left open. EnBW aims to shut down the plant on a short-term and provisional basis as a consequence.

Rapid structural change in the energy sector forms the background to this decision. Especially as a result of the marked additional construction of renewable energy sources, numerous fossil plant are exposed to great commercial and financial pressure, and frequently continue to be operated solely as "marginal power plants". This is resulting in a drastic fall in revenue. Especially gas power stations but also older coal power plants and oil-fired systems can no longer cover their full costs given today's electricity market prices, and can consequently not be operated on a commercially viable basis.