Funding in the National Centre for Research and Development competition

About the project

Main aim of the project is complex preparation of domestic power industry decarbonization plan by means of modernization with use of generation III/III+ and IV nuclear reactors

The progressive change in the Polish power system structure increases the need to develop a coherent structure ensuring system stability and security. The decarbonisation plan is developed through the implementation of seven research tasks. The plan is intended to become a roadmap for future Coal-to-Nuclear investment processes. As part of the project, it is planned to launch the national Power Transformation Cluster, which will constitute organizational support for many activities in the national power plants and combined heat and power plants transformation process.

The project is implemented by a consortium established by five entities: the Silesian University of Technology, the Ministry of Climate and Environment, Energoprojekt-Katowice SA, the Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology and the Sobieski Institute. Funding of the project was obtained under 6th competition of the National Centre of Research and Development „GOSPOSTRATEG”.

Project goals

Project description

Atom as a way for decarbonization

The implementation of nuclear power in the power sector decarbonising process is a response both to the impending need to replace aging coal-fired power plants and to the necessity to increase the stability and flexibility of energy generation and supply. The process of replacing carbon sources will be a long-term process. The technologies that will be selected for applications in individual places of the current coal-fired units operation should be selected based on an in-depth technical and economic analysis, taking into account also environmental and social aspects.

Regardless of the age of the country coal power generation systems, and therefore regardless of their technical condition, each location appropriate for these systems is potentially beneficial in the context of investment processes aimed at continuing energy activity after the end of coal units operation.

It is connected first of all with the high human potential in the area of ​​large power generation systems management and servicing, generally irrespective of the provided technology. Maintaining jobs in areas where coal units activity is being phased out, including the very often operations of coal mines coexisting with production systems, is beneficial in the social context, but also results in higher acceptability for planned investor actions. The location of the investment close to the coal-fired unit may also lead to a significant reduction in investment costs, which may be related to the use of some of the existing technical and construction infrastructure in case of the new energy source.

The DEsire project undertakes to assess the technical and economic potential, the level of social acceptability and the human resources preparation, and on the basis of this, create a plan for the modernization of national power units in accordance with the idea of ​​Coal-to-Nuclear transformation. An important cognitive aspect is the assessment of the possibility of using the existing coal-fired units infrastructure as part of nuclear investments, both for the use of generation III / III + and generation IV reactors.

Consortium

The DEsire project is being carried out by a Consortium formed by five organisations.

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