Last Gasp

The report finds that ten companies were responsible for an estimated two-thirds of the health damage caused by EU coal power plants in 2016, including 7,600 premature deaths. RWE is identified as the most harmful company, with health costs of €5.4 billion in 2016. The analysis highlights that for many companies, the health costs imposed on society are similar in magnitude to the revenues they earn from selling coal-fired electricity. The report argues that companies are 'clinging to coal' through lack of retirement plans, continued investment in old plants, and lobbying for subsidies, and recommends a full phase-out of coal by 2030.

• Ten companies were responsible for an estimated two-thirds of the health damage caused by EU coal power plants in 2016, resulting in 7,600 premature deaths, 3,320 new cases of chronic bronchitis, 137,000 asthma symptom days in children, 5,820 hospital admissions, and over two million lost working days.
• RWE was the most harmful company to health, causing €5.4 billion in modelled health costs in 2016. Approximately 65% of this damage is attributed to four large lignite plants in North Rhine-Westphalia (Neurath, Niederaußem, Weisweiler, and Frimmersdorf), which affect 46 million people living within 200km.
• The health costs imposed on society by coal companies are often similar to the revenues they receive from selling electricity. For RWE, the modelled health cost was €48 per MWh, while the wholesale electricity price was just over €50 per MWh. Some companies have even higher ratios, such as ČEZ at €70/MWh and three state-owned Romanian companies exceeding €200/MWh.
• Germany is a primary driver of coal-related health impacts in the EU because it accounts for 36% of all EU coal-based electricity generation, its plants are located near high population densities, and its air pollution limits have remained broadly unchanged since 2009.
• Many coal companies are resisting the energy transition by failing to set retirement dates, investing in new coal plants or mines, and lobbying for 'capacity mechanisms'—subsidies that the report claims are often used to support unprofitable fossil fuels.
• The report identifies a trend of companies selling coal plants to other operators rather than closing them, which merely transfers the pollution problem. EPH is cited as a company that grew by purchasing old plants from utilities exiting the coal business.

APA

Moore, C., Jones, D., Richards, W., Gierens, R., Myllyvirta, L., Primc, Z., McNevin, G., Gutmann, K., Lazarus, A., Schaible, C., & Flisowska, J. (2018). Last Gasp. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2020/03/Last-Gasp-2018.pdf

Chicago

Moore, Charles, Dave Jones, Will Richards, Rosa Gierens, Lauri Myllyvirta, Zala Primc, Greg McNevin, et al. Last Gasp. Ember, 2018. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2020/03/Last-Gasp-2018.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{moore2018last, author = {Moore, Charles and Jones, Dave and Richards, Will and Gierens, Rosa and Myllyvirta, Lauri and Primc, Zala and McNevin, Greg and Gutmann, Kathrin and Lazarus, Anton and Schaible, Christian and Flisowska, Joanna}, title = {{Last Gasp}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2018}, month = nov, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2020/03/Last-Gasp-2018.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }