EU court orders Polish coal mine to suspend operation
2021-06-03 13:32:07 [Print]
Poland must immediately stop mining lignite coal at the Turow mine operated by state-run PGE, the European Union's top court said, handing a win to the Czech government which had sought an order to stop the mining activities.
The Czech Republic filed a lawsuit in February calling for a halt to activities at the mine, located near the Czech and German borders, saying Warsaw had violated EU law by extending mining at Turow until 2026.
The Court of Justice of the European Union said it had not yet made a final decision on the case, but ordered Poland to cease mining at Turow until the final judgement is delivered.
"It appears sufficiently likely that the continuation of lignite mining activities at the Turow mine before the final judgment is delivered is likely to have negative effects on the level of groundwater in Czech territory," the court said in a statement.
"PGE cannot agree to the closure of the mine in Turow. This would mean an automatic shutdown of the power plant that supplies electricity to 3.7 million Poles' homes," PGE said in a statement.
It said the court's decision would force Poland to import lignite from the Czech Republic or Germany or import power, adding that if it shut down all the blocks in the power plant, it would not be able to restart them in the future.
Czech Environment Minister Richard Brabec said he expected the court to hear the Turow case soon.
The Czech Republic filed a lawsuit in February calling for a halt to activities at the mine, located near the Czech and German borders, saying Warsaw had violated EU law by extending mining at Turow until 2026.
The Court of Justice of the European Union said it had not yet made a final decision on the case, but ordered Poland to cease mining at Turow until the final judgement is delivered.
"It appears sufficiently likely that the continuation of lignite mining activities at the Turow mine before the final judgment is delivered is likely to have negative effects on the level of groundwater in Czech territory," the court said in a statement.
"PGE cannot agree to the closure of the mine in Turow. This would mean an automatic shutdown of the power plant that supplies electricity to 3.7 million Poles' homes," PGE said in a statement.
It said the court's decision would force Poland to import lignite from the Czech Republic or Germany or import power, adding that if it shut down all the blocks in the power plant, it would not be able to restart them in the future.
Czech Environment Minister Richard Brabec said he expected the court to hear the Turow case soon.
