Bełchatów lignite-fired power station, Europe's largest CO2 emitter, Poland

Sentinel-2 MSI acquired on 20 September 2018 at 09:50:21 UTC
Sentinel-1 CSAR IW acquired on 06 August 2021 at 16:26:38 UTC
Sentinel-1 CSAR IW acquired on 18 August 2021 at 16:26:39 UTC
Author(s): Sentinel Vision team, VisioTerra, France - svp@visioterra.fr
Keyword(s): Climate change, infrastructure, non-renewable energy, strip mine, coal, greenhouse gas emissions, Poland
Fig. 1 - S2 (20.09.2018) - Lying 150 km west of the Polish capital, Warsaw, Bełchatów coal-fired power station was built in 1982.
3D view
Fig. 2 - S1 (06, 12 & 18.08.2021) - Europe's largest thermal power station, it has a capacity of 5100 MW, as much as 4-5 nuclear reactors.
3D view
Fig. 3 - S2 (20.09.2018) - It produces 27–28 TWh of electricity per year, or 20% of the total electricity generation in Poland.
3D view
The plant is estimated to have been the coal-fired power plant which emitted the most carbon dioxide in the World in 2018 at 37,6 million tons; 1.5 millions tons more than the entire 8 millions inhabitants of Switzerland including carbon generated by their electric and non-electric power consumption. Its relative emissions are estimated at 1.756 kg per kWh, the 11th worst in Europe.
Fig. 4 - S1 (18.08.2021) - Lignite (brown coal) for the plant is provided by a large neighboring strip mine Bełchatów coal mine.
3D view
It of the largest coal reserve in Poland having estimated reserves of 1930 million tonnes of lignite coal. In 2015, the mine produced 42.1 million tonnes of lignite (66.7% of Poland's total lignite production). It is up to 8.5 km long, 3.25 km wide and 310 m deep.
Fig. 5 - S2 (20.09.2018) - In June 2021 local authorities published a plan that may see the plant decommissioned by 2036.
3D view
The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Space Agency or the European Union.
Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024, processed by VisioTerra.
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