The Datteln 4 power station, which went online in mid-2020, is one of the most modern hard-coal fired power stations in the world. While generating electricity for public supply and environmentally friendly district heating, it also produces various high-quality power station by-products. The marketing of these products - hard coal fly ash (EFA-Füller®), bottom ash (Grobalith®) and FGD gypsum - is handled by the Uniper subsidiary BauMineral.
At the beginning of the year 2021, the supply of customers with hard coal fly ash EFA-Füller® D4 has started. The power station is doubly important for the ready-mix concrete industry in North Rhine-Westphalia: Datteln is located in the center of North Rhine-Westphalia. Alongside Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, North Rhine-Westphalia is one of the German states with the highest ready-mix concrete production. Approx. 9 million m³ of concrete are produced annually with a comparatively high plant density, which shortens transport distances. Customers will not have to do without a product they are familiar with for the foreseeable future and can thus continue to offer concrete including hard coal fly ash, which is very popular on construction sites because of its good workability and also has ecological advantages. "This aspect is expressed by the so-called Environmental Product Declaration, which is available for our hard coal fly ashes EFA-Füller and bottom ashes Grobalith and is used by our customers for their life cycle assessment," says Daniel Ringwelski, responsible for sales in Central Germany.
Due to the gradual phase-out of coal-fired power generation by 2038, the volumes of hard coal fly ash available in Germany will continue to decline. This leads to problems from different perspectives. Today, there is no adequate substitute for hard coal fly ash. Ultimately, concrete producers will have to resort to cement to make the m3 full again. BauMineral therefore maintains close contact with its customers and tries to make EFA-Füller® D4 available for construction projects in which hard coal fly ash is indispensable. Project-related quantities are coordinated in advance. Fortunately, the Datteln power station is equipped with an 80,000-ton silo for the intermediate storage of hard coal fly ash. Thus, with appropriate coordination in advance, construction projects can be served reliably.
