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This weekend sees the end of an era as Germany’s long journey away from generating power from nuclear takes place with the closure of its last three operating reactors, World Nuclear News reported on Friday.
The last three operating nuclear power reactors in Germany are being permanently shut down on 15th April. Isar 2, Emsland and Neckarwestheim 2, all pressurised water reactors, had been due to end their lives by the end of last year, but were allowed an extension for the winter following energy capacity concerns as a result of the crisis in Ukraine. The Emsland, Isar II and Neckarwestheim II nuclear power plants supplied a total of 32.7 billion kilowatt hours of low-emission electricity in 2022
This weekend’s final closures have been more than 20 years in the making and are the results of decisions taken by various coalition governments in the country.
Steffi Lemke, Federal Minister for the Environment and Nuclear Safety, said the phase-out made the country “safer” saying “with the shutdown of the last three nuclear power plants, we are entering a new era of energy production. So let’s continue to work on solutions for a nuclear repository and put all our energy into expanding renewable energies”.
Robert Habeck, Federal Minister of Economics and Climate Protection, said that the phase-out was implementing the 2011 government’s decision and said “security of energy supply in Germany is and will remain guaranteed … the massive expansion of renewable energies in particular provides additional security. In 2030 we want to generate 80% of the electricity here in Germany from renewable energies”.
The priority now was to “complete the phase-out safely, including dismantling, and to advance the search for a repository for high-level radioactive waste and permanent solutions for low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste”.
According to an opinion poll for broadcaster ARD, six out of ten people in the DeutschlandTrend survey oppose the nuclear phase-out with 34% in favour of it. That compares with the figures from June 2011 when 54% thought the policy was correct and 43% opposed it, ARD said.
