Production of Electricity from Coal-Fired Power Plants and Accompanying CO2 Emissions: Comparison of EU-27 and Serbia

Abstract

Even in the third decade of the 21st century, large power plants are still responsible for more than half of the electricity production in Europe. They predominantly use fossil fuels in their work, which results in the emission of pollutants into the air. Nevertheless, thanks to EU directives, as well as disturbances on the market, emissions of carbon dioxide from large combustion plants in the EU-27 are intensively decreasing in the last two decades. Although the use of coal, especially in the countries of the European Union, is in constant decline, there is space for additional reduction. Through this paper, the authors wanted to present the completely actual situation of emissions of CO2 from thermal power plants in Europe, that have used coal for electricity production, as well as to compare such plants with those operating in the Republic of Serbia. The CO2 emission was analysed in relation to the installed capacity, as well as compared to the energy produced and supplied to the system. By analysing the obtained values of the ratio of emissions to the number of inhabitants, the area of the territory, production and consumption of electricity, as well as to the GDP, it is noticeable that a much larger amount of CO2 is generated on the territory of the Republic of Serbia to achieve a similar energy, industrial and economic effect compared to the EU-27. By researching location data of coal burning in the production of electricity in the Republic of Serbia revealed the existence of a large difference in the amount of CO2 emissions, which is a consequence of the composition of the coal used and the combustion modes in thermal power plants.