CEZ Uses as Secondary Materials Almost Fifty Percent

Simultaneously with desulphurization of its power plants, the power-generation company CEZ has been paying its attention also to other areas of protection of the environment, i.e. the use of waste. Almost a half of energy by-products were used last year as secondary materials, and CEZ intends to even increase the percentage.

CEZ produced in 1999 during generation of electricity and heat 7.7 million tons of energy by-products which include ashes, products of desulphurization of waste gases using the semi-dry method and energy-gypsum from the waste gases cleaning using the wet limestone wash. Of this amount of energy by-products, 3.8 million tons were used as secondary raw materials, which was due mainly to the change in the deposition of solid residuals from burning, from the previous wet flotation to mud pits to the dry deposition. CEZ has already spent almost CZK 9 billion to change the way of waste depositing and activities related to the use of secondary materials and plans to spend this year CZK 500 million.

Ashes and products from desulphurization of waste gases using the semi-dry method are used for the landscape reclaiming after coal mining or for mud pit reclaiming, without any further adverse effects. Some components of ashes are used for production of cement, concrete mixtures, asphalt insulation materials and bricklaying materials. Specially processed ashes are used as a building and insulation material for dumps and can replace natural raw materials.

Energy-gypsum is used for production of plasterboards by Knauf and Rigips and for production of cement, replacing natural gypsum.

The power-generation company CEZ had successfully implemented during the nineties an extensive environmental program, spending almost CZK 45 billion. In a very short period of time as stipulated by the "Clean Air Act", waste gases from 32 CEZ power-plant boilers with the installed capacity of 5,930MW were desulphurized and seven boilers were modified for the fluid-burning. These devices are far from being dimensioned and operated on the limit as stipulated by law. CEZ specified in numerous cases even stricter technical requirements for their operation rather than those stipulated by the Clean Air Act. Emission limits of major pollutants which are in force for new sources thus can be and actually are reliably observed. The environmental program also included the permanent shut-down of almost 2,000MW of the oldest generation units. Emissions of sulphur dioxide and fly ash are currently lower by 90 % compared with the situation in 1992, emissions of oxides of nitrogen decreased by more than 55 % and emissions of the carbon monoxide decreased by almost 80 %.

Ladislav Krizpress, spokesman of CEZ

19. 4. 2000