Farmer deals blow to power plant in Germany

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - A German farmer has dealt a blow to efforts by the country's largest utility E.ON AG to build a coal-fired power plant as opposition grows to power stations that emit carbon dioxide.

The Higher Administrative Court for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia ruled in favor of the farmer who had challenged E.ON's plans to build a 1,050 megawatt power station in Datteln in northern Germany.

The ruling comes amid a string of legal challenges to power plants in Germany, Europe's largest power market, as citizens and local opposition argue these plants help increasing global warming.

E.ON's competitor RWE had to abandon plans to build a hard coal fired power plant in Ensdorf in western Germany after people in the region voted against the plant.

E.ON's plant in Datteln does not sufficiently take into account the dangers of the power station for the local population and E.ON is building the plant at a location that is actually not envisaged for such a power plant, the court ruled.

The court declared a plan from the city of Datteln for the plant as invalid as it does not take into account prerequisites from the parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia for a sustainable use of energy.

E.ON said it had to study the ruling in order to determine its future actions. (Reporting by Peter Dinkloh; Editing by David Holmes)