Tories to ban coal power without CCS

The Conservative Party will next week propose tough carbon emissions standards for new power stations that will effectively ban all coal-fired plants built without carbon capture and storage (CCS) systems.

Under the proposals, power stations would not be allowed to emit more than 500kg of CO2 per MW/h of power. This would effectively ban the building of new coal-fired power stations that emitted between 700kg and 850kg of CO2 per MW/h, and new oil-fired stations that emitted 590kg per MW/h, while allowing cleaner gas-fired power stations and plants with CCS systems fitted.

A spokesman for the Conservatives said that the proposals would spell an end to plans for a new generation of coal power stations in the UK, including the proposed development at Kingsnorth in Kent, unless they incorporated CCS technologies

"Coal doesn't have a future unless it has CCS," he added.

A spokesman for energy giant E.ON, which is proposing to build the Kingsnorth plant, said the company welcomed the debate on CCS and was pleased to see that the Conservative Party believes there was a long-term future for coal with CCS.

However, he warned that such proposals could lead to a short-term energy gap from 2015, when many current coal and nuclear plants are scheduled to close.

"The issue is what fills the gap," he said. "You could increase energy from gas, but then you have to consider the volatility of supply from gas."

The move will be seen as an attempt to outflank the government over its support for CCS.

The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform is currently holding a competition to commission a CCS demonstration plant, but critics have repeatedly accused the government of not doing enough to accelerate the deployment of the technology.