RWE AG will delay dismantling one of its shuttered coal stations in Germany in case it’s needed to step in to keep the lights on this winter.

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(Bloomberg) — RWE AG will delay dismantling one of its shuttered coal stations in Germany in case it’s needed to step in to keep the lights on this winter.

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The company will keep the option open to bring back the the 50-year-old Neurath A, plant which was shut down on April 1 in line with the nation’s plan to phase out coal, RWE said on Thursday in its earnings report. 

“The unit will not be dismantled for the time being in light of the current debate on reducing gas use for electricity generation,” the company said. “We are therefore keeping the door open for this unit to be restarted.”

Germany has lined up a reserve of 10 gigawatts of coal and oil plants to remain in operation to help reduce the reliance on stations burning natural gas as supplies of the fuel from Russia is dwindling. Of this 1.9 gigawatts is lignite-fired stations, including three RWE units with a total capacity of 0.9 gigawatts. Neurath A could be used in addition to the planned reserve. 

This move to secure energy supplies will mean more emissions in the short-term, a reality that policy-makers have been forced to accept as Russia’s war on Ukraine cuts supplies of gas to the region. The European Commission is pushing countries to speed up renewables build out to help wean the region off international supply of fossil fuels.

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It will be down to energy market regulator the Federal Network Agency to decide if the plant will be necessary to protect supply security, RWE said.