An inter-agency working group distributing
greenhouse gas emission quotas reserved for new
participants rejected
a request by the Brikel Thermal Power Plant for additional
quotas, the Environment and Water Ministry said on Monday after
a meeting of the working group.
The group denied the
request because it found that Brikel did not qualify as a new
participant in the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU
ETS).
The new participants'
reserve is the only possible source of additional emission
quotas after the European Commission approved Bulgaria's
National Emission Quotas Allocation Plan for
2008-2012. The
approved allocations may not be changed, the Ministry
said.
Under the National
Plan, the Brikel Thermal Power Plant has received free
emission quotas on the basis of its verified emissions in 2008.
The quota allocation process takes into account the fact that
the Plant's operation was limited to 20,000 hours in
accordance with its complex permit and its greenhouse gas
permit. This approach is applied to all installations covered
by EU ETS.
As the Plant
continues to operate beyond the permitted 20,000 hour period, it is
expected to be short of emission quotas for 2010. Part of the
shortage will be offset by the quotas which the Plant will
receive for 2011, allocated with a view to its limited operation
period, but this will not be enough. The difference should be
made up for by buying quotas with money provided by the
Plant's owner.Ifthe Plant fails to
honour its obligation regarding the transfer of quotas
equalling the total amount of verified emissions released by
it in 2010, the Plant will be fined 200 leva per tonne of
carbon dioxide in accordance with the transitional and
final provisions of the Environmental Protection Act, the
Ministry said.