
Dr. Staffan Qvist
Our mission is to raise awareness of technologies that can replace coal in existing power stations with sustainable solutions, preserving vital infrastructure and local jobs—an approach known as Repowering.
repowering explainedCoal-Fired Power Plants (CFPPs) produces 1/3 of the world’s CO₂ emissions. Put simply, coal burning for electricity generation is the single largest contributor to climate change. Many coal-fired power plants are less than ten years old — built to run for decades more. If all recently built coal plants operate for their full technical lifespans, they will emit around 200 billion tonnes of CO₂ — enough to consume the entire remaining global carbon budget.
To move forward as a global civilization, we must end coal and embrace clean energy — renewable or zero-emission sources that don’t pollute the atmosphere or heat the climate. Repower asks: what if the thousands of coal units built around the world could become part of the solution? How can we reuse these massive investments to ease the energy transition — and do so in a way that’s just and fair?
Repowering means reusing what still works at coal-fired power plants — without burning coal. It’s about preserving local jobs, maintaining economic activity, and making the most of existing infrastructure. Sites, permits, and equipment can often be repurposed, avoiding the environmental damage of building on untouched land. All around, it’s a smarter, cleaner path forward.
We are partnering with other organisations — from policymakers and banks to utilities, researchers and more — to accelerate and push forward repowering projects around the world. Insights and outcomes are shared across our network.
Our tool to assess the suitability of repowering a given power plant through multiple pathways, including advanced nuclear, next-generation geothermal, and concentrated solar power— with further options in development.
The Repower Initiative is developing a framework to conduct Case Studies on the clean repowering of coal-fired power plants. Repowering potential is assessed through techno-economic, financial, social and environmental analysis.
We simplify technical insights to promote repowering as a climate solution, and foster collaboration through international events that unite experts, policymakers, and industry leaders to drive innovation and strengthen the ecosystem.
our network
Dr. Staffan Qvist
Dr. Daniel Cox
Dr. Sebastian Svanström
Dr. Joseph McKenna
Kirsten McNeill
Łukasz Bartela
Pawel Gladysz
Wojciech Uchman
Mr. GUO Zhusheng
Mr. WU Xiaotong
Wei Li
Yaoli Zhang
Professor Jeong Ik Lee
Seok Ho Song
Seok Jun Oh
Albert Payaró-Llisterri
Bryony Worthington
Georg Holzner
Anna Skorek-Osikowska
Dorota Homa
Jakub Ochmann
Bob S. Effendi
Dr. Ir. Retno Gumilang Dewi, MEnvEngsc
Dr. Rino Mukti
Ir. Eko Yuli Winarno
Ir. Erwin Mirza
Dr. JING Rui
Dr. Muyi Yang
Dr. Man-Sung Yim
Dr. Yonghee Kim
Jai Oan Cho
Alice Anlind
Nicko Goodman
Qian Wu
María Urbano