ContourGlobal to continue upgrade of Kramatorsk combined heat and power plant
Kyiv, April 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – U.S. ContourGlobal private energy company plans to continue upgrading of Kramatorsk combined heat and power plant in Donetsk region.
ContourGlobal vice president for Eastern Europe and CIS, Garry Levesley, said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday, that the larger upgrade of the plant would allow its exploitation to be extended for 10-15 years. He said that the company is also considering the possibility of realizing a project to construct a new combined heat and power plant in Kramatorsk, although a final decision on the project would be made only at the end of the year.
"The company plans to invest in heat power systems in Kramatorsk, and later to build a new combined heat and power plant or conduct a large upgrade of the present plant, which would prolong its exploitation for 10-15 years," Levesley said.
He said that the cost of constructing the new combined heat and power plant is estimated at $400 million, while the upgrade of the present plant is estimated at $100 million.
Commenting on the upgrading of Kramatorsk combined heat and power plant that has been completed, he said that thanks to switching the boilers to using coal, imported gas consumption fell 2.2 times. In particular, if in 2006 the share of gas was 93%, currently coal's share is 70%.
Actual gas consumption in 2007 was 129 million cubic meters, while the forecast for gas consumption in 2009 is 59 million cubic meters.
Levesley said that the switching of the plant to domestic coal means additional orders of over 200,00 tonnes of coal per year for domestic coalmines in conditions of crisis. In addition, only Ukrainian constructors were involved in the upgrade of the plant.
He also said that due to the present unstable economic situation in Ukraine and unexpected changes in the exchange rates, the company has postponed financing of the construction of a co-generating plant with the capacity of 28 MWt that uses gas of the Bohorodchany compressor station of the Soyuz gas pipeline in Ivano-Frankivsk region.
"We have to buy equipment using euros, while the profit would be in hryvnias," he said.
ContourGlobal, founded in September 2005, is engaged in development, production and management in the energy sector. Its key stockholder is private investment company Capital Group (the United States).