Large combustion plants operating in Europe

Assessment versions

Published (reviewed and quality assured)

• No published assessments

Rationale

Justification for indicator selection

LCPs use large amounts of fuels, mostly fossil fuels, to produce useful forms of energy. These plants generate a number of residues and waste products, and large amounts of emissions to all environmental media. The aim of the LCP Directive is to reduce the emissions of acidifying pollutants, particulate matter and ozone precursors. Emissions from LCPs constitute a large proportion of total anthropogenic emissions. In 2015, LCP emissions of SO₂ and NO_­x made up 44 % and 14 %, respectively, of total EU-28 emissions of these pollutants (see Data specifications).

The capacity and fuel mix profile of the LCP sector provides a context for the environmental pressures it generates. These pressures are tracked in indicator IND002.

Scientific references

• No rationale references available

Indicator definition

This indicator provides a profile of the number of LCPs operating in Europe, their installed capacity and the mix of fuels they use. It is based on data from 2004 onwards. The geographical coverage comprises the EU-28 countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom).

The temporal coverage is 2004-2016 (the most recent year with officially reported emissions; EEA, 2018a).

Units

The units used in this indicator are:

Total fuel consumption, measured in terajoules (TJ) per year or gigajoules (GJ) per year.

Rated thermal input, measured in megawatt thermal (MWth) or gigawatt thermal (GWth).

Policy context and targets

Context description

The EU has had a policy on emissions from combustion plants since the 1980s. Between 2004 and 2013, two pieces of EU law have been in place: the LCP Directive (EC, 2001) and the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Directive (EC, 2008). EU law imposed specific emission limit values on emissions of NO_x, SO₂ and dust from plants with a thermal rated input equal to or greater than 50 MW. Since 1 January 2016, this legislation has been replaced by the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) (EC, 2010).

The aim of the EU policy on LCPs is to reduce emissions to air, water and land — including measures related to waste — in order to achieve a high level of protection of the environment as a whole. The focus for LCPs is to reduce their emissions of acidifying pollutants, particles and ozone precursors.

Legal instruments that address emissions from large combustion plants

Emissions from LCPs are subject to several EU-wide regulations:

• The LCP Directive (EC, 2001): this sets emission limit values for SO₂, NO_x and dust from combustion plants with a rated thermal input of 50 MW or more.
• The IED (EC, 2010): IED permits take an integrated approach to the whole environmental performance of plants. For LCPs and several other activities, the IED sets emission limit values for SO₂, NO_x and dust. Permit conditions, including emission limit values, are based on best available techniques (BATs). According to the IED, a site visit must take place at least every 1-3 years. On 1 January 2016, the IED replaced the LCP Directive.
• The European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR) (EC, 2006a): plants with activities over certain thresholds must report to the E-PRTR on releases of pollutants, off-site transfers of waste and pollutants in wastewater, and releases of pollutants from diffuse sources.
  
  

Permit conditions, including emission limit values, must be based on BATs. BATs refer to the most effective, and economically and technically viable methods of operation that reduce emissions and impact on the environment.

To define BATs, the European Commission organises an exchange of information between Member State experts, industry and environmental organisations. This process results in the production of BAT reference documents (BREFs). Each BREF contains information on the techniques and processes used in a specific industrial sector in the EU, current emission and fuel consumption trends, and techniques to consider for the determination of BATs, as well as emerging techniques.

A BREF for LCPs was adopted in July 2006 (EC, 2006b). It contains information on BATs for energy generation, combustion techniques from various fuel types, and processes and techniques for reducing emissions, including noise.

Targets

No target specified.

Related policy documents

• Directive 2001/80/EC, large combustion plants
  Directive 2001/80/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2001 on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from large combustion plants
• Directive 2008/1/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control
  IPPC (newly recoded) Directive 2008/1/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control. (see earlier code 96/61/EC)
• Directive 2010/75/EC on industrial emissions
  Directive 2010/75/EC on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) The IED is the successor of the IPPC Directive and in essence, it is about minimising pollution from various industrial sources throughout the European Union. Operators of industrial installations operating activities covered by Annex I of the IED are required to obtain an integrated permit from the authorities in the EU countries. About 50.000 installations were covered by the IPPC Directive and the IED will cover some new activities which could mean the number of installations rising slightly.
• Reference Document on Best Available Techniques (BREF) for Large Combustion Plants
  Reference Document on Best Available Techniques (BREF) for Large Combustion Plants
• Reference Document on Best Available Techniques (BREF) for Large Combustion Plants
  Reference Document on Best Available Techniques (BREF) for Large Combustion Plants
• Regulation (EC) No 166/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 January 2006 concerning the establishment of a European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register
  Regulation (EC) No 166/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 January 2006 concerning the establishment of a European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register

Methodology

Methodology for indicator calculation

Queries are applied to the LCP database (EEA, 2017a) for the calculations necessary in this analysis. For each plant, total fuel consumption (a sum of fuel consumption from all fuel types) and capacity class (based on a plant's rated thermal input (MWth)) are calculated. Plants are grouped into five capacity classes: > 500 MWth, 301-500 MWth, 101-300 MWth, 50-100 MWth and < 50 MWth. The last of these (< 50 MWth) is excluded from this indicator.

Methodology for gap filling

For the earlier years in the time series, some plants had missing MWth capacity data. Where possible, the MWth from an adjacent year’s reporting for that plant was used to gap fill. 

Methodology references

No methodology references available.

Data specifications

EEA data references

• Reported data on large combustion plants covered by Directive 2001/80/EC provided by Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) , European Environment Agency (EEA)
• National emissions reported to the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP Convention) provided by European Environment Agency (EEA)

Data sources in latest figures

Uncertainties

Methodology uncertainty

This indicator covers the EU-28 countries. However, there are no data for Croatia for 2004-2009. Croatia data have not been gap-filled; in the years for which data for Croatia have been reported, the data account for less than 1 % of total EU-28 emissions and fuel consumption. This is, therefore, considered to cause only a minor distortion of the overall trend.

Data sets uncertainty

Although the reporting requirements began in 2004, it is possible that the data for the first reported period (2004-2006) contain some gaps.

Rationale uncertainty

No uncertainty has been specified.