経産省、石炭火力休廃止へ検討開始　電力確保や雇用維持に課題

　経済産業省は１３日、二酸化炭素（ＣＯ２）排出量の多い旧式の石炭火力発電所を２０３０年度までに休廃止する方針決定を受け、具体策の検討を始めた。有識者らで構成する小委員会で、早期の休廃止に踏み切る事業者への優遇措置や、太陽光など再生可能エネルギーの導入促進に向けた送電線利用ルールの見直しなどを議論。年内をめどに提言をまとめ、来夏にも改定するエネルギー基本計画に反映させる。
　同日の小委のオンライン会議では、具体策の検討に当たり考慮すべき課題を列挙。委員からは原発再稼働が遅れる中での安定的な電力供給維持や、休廃止で減る発電所立地地域の雇用への配慮が必要との意見が相次いだ。（2020/07/13-17:28）

An industry ministry panel started full-fledged discussions Monday on how to realize Japan's exit from inefficient coal-fired thermal power generation by fiscal 2030.
   Member experts of the panel will mainly study preferential treatment to electricity suppliers stopping or scrapping obsolete coal-fired power plants early and review rules on the use of power grids to further promote renewable power generation, with a view to compiling proposals to the ministry by the end of the year, ministry officials said.
   Proposed measures will be incorporated into the government's revised basic energy plan, set to be shown as early as summer 2021, they said.
   At the day's online meeting, the experts listed issues that should be given due consideration together with concrete ideas about how to get rid of coal-burning power plants emitting large amounts of heat-trapping carbon dioxide.
   Among others, they pointed to the need to maintain stable electricity supplies amid delays in getting nuclear power plants back online and work out a solution to the job elimination problem expected to occur in areas hosting outdated coal power plants.