Government stands in the way of PP pressure to expand nuclear: ‘Not up for debate’

The government is rebelling against the opportunism of the conservative opposition, which is trying to delay the closure of nuclear power plants by taking advantage of the energy crisis andThere is no benefit in extending the life of reactors with the goal of immediate energy savings. It emphasizes that, as required by the European Union, for the coming winter and the following winter, in any case, the electricity companies themselves must show an interest in continuing to operate their facilities and accept any possible cost overruns due to the extension. will fall into their accounts and they will not charge taxpayers fees from them.

“The shutdown program is public and is agreed upon between the companies that own the factories,” Teresa Ribera, vice president and minister of Ecological Transition, said in an interview with Onda Cero this Tuesday. Cancel or change this phase-out program “Now this is not part of the discussion,” he condemned. Not a single kilowatt of nuclear power is missing from the Spanish power system (…) It is not an approach that determines how successful it will be in this case that measures to save energy should be taken immediately.

For the manager, having a roadmap with specific dates for closures, “knowing how much nuclear waste will be and how it is managed”, “managing the entry of other alternative power generation technologies”, as well as explaining what the electricity companies themselves are planning “necessary investments to continue operating” assistant

Agreement with Endesa, Iberdrola and Naturgy

In 2019, the government agreed with major power companies on a program to phase out all Spanish power plants, which would result in a total nuclear power outage in the country. The agreement with Endesa, Iberdrola, Naturgy and EDP envisions the gradual closure of the facilities between 2027 and 2035. The manager insists that no company has shown any interest in making major new investments to extend the life of existing facilities. new facilities.

The government started the process of updating the Radioactive Waste General Plan (PGRR), a long-term roadmap for how waste will be managed, how nuclear power plants will be dismantled and how much it will cost. And the new plan is based on the fact that all power plants will be phased out between 2027 and 2035, when a definitive nuclear shutdown is expected in the country.

“We have to be very clear about who will bear the costs. [las centrales nucleares] “We need to analyze the situation very well, privatize profits and socialize losses, to ensure that costs do not fall to the public,” said Joan Groizard, executive director of the Institute for Energy Diversification and Savings (IDAE).

The latest draft of the PGRR Government projects costs to dismantle facilities and manage their radioactive waste between 24,400 and 26,500 million euros, depending on the construction of a single warehouse or several warehouses, and between 1,400 million and 3,500 million compared to previous versions. An extra cost that electricity companies refuse to bear because it is a result of the delay in having a central warehouse, and that they propose to be reflected in the electricity bill as a cost of the electricity system in any case.

The Congress of Deputies has rejected three proposals in recent months (from PP, Vox and Ciudadanos) asking the Government to extend the deadlines for the shutdown of power plants as a way to strengthen the country’s energy sovereignty. The aim of the trio of resolutions by the three parties was to extend the lifespan of power plants beyond what is currently planned and to strengthen energy autonomy as opposed to dependence on gas by leaving nuclear blackout after 2035. The far-right party’s resolution went even further and even proposed repealing emission reduction targets and legislation against climate change.