Environment
Regional Overview
North America
Our 13 North American power stations have a net International Power-owned capacity of 6,618 MW.
Eight of the power stations are high efficiency combined cycle gas turbines (CCGTs) utilising state-of-the-art low NOx combustion technology. As a result these power stations operate with a very low environmental footprint.
Our Coleto Creek power station burns low-sulphur coal from the nearby Powder River Basin. The installation of new baghouse filters enables emissions of particulates to be further reduced.
At our Milford CCGT plant, effluent water from a local waste water treatment plant is utilised to provide cooling for the condensers. This re-use of low grade water saves approximately 650,000 gallons per day.
Whilst the USA has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, there are a number of interesting state initiatives which we are monitoring. These include the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative being run on the east coast and the Global Warming Solutions Act in California.
Europe
We have a wide portfolio of asset types across our thirteen European power stations. They have a net International Power-owned capacity of 7,255 MW and range from conventional coal, oil and gas fired plant to renewables such as hydro and wind through to our Syngas plant in ISAB.
We are committed to investing in our power stations in order to reduce environmental impacts. An example of this is a £145m project that is currently underway to fit flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) to our Rugeley power station. This will result in the plant being one of the lowest coal-fired emitters of SO2 in Europe.
As part of our ongoing strategy to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, we are continuing to seek high-quality investment opportunities in renewables. A good example of this is our acquisition, in 2006, of the 436 MW Levanto onshore windfarm portfolio. This acquisition provides us with a significant pipeline of future development opportunities in renewables.
Middle East
International Power has a net owned capacity of 2,454 MW in our six Middle Eastern power stations which are all modern gas-fired plants using the latest low NOx combustion technology.
They are different from our other power stations, in that several of the plants, in addition to generating electricity, also provide large amounts of desalinated water for both domestic and industrial use.
Australia
Our six Australian assets cover a wide range of plant types from conventional coal to modern CCGT through to wind power. They have a net International Power-owned capacity of 3,221 MW.
International Power is a major power producer in Victoria and we take our environmental responsibilities very seriously.
We also recognise that our coal-fired power stations have a larger impact both in their emissions and in their use of local resources such as coal and water.
In order to help reduce some of our environmental impacts in the region we have implemented a number of initiatives including:
- Using return water from our steam turbine condensers and water from artesian wells to heat the greenhouses of Hazelwood roses.
- Reintroducing native grasses as part of the Hazelwood mine rehabilitation programme.
- Installing new electrostatic precipitators at Hazelwood in order to remove particulates from our exhausts.
Asia
Our five Asian power stations have a net International Power-owned capacity of
