this to be abandoned nuclear power at the end of 2022 was a decision made years ago Germany this created almost no controversy. But then it came most Russian invasion of Ukraine and the energy crisis this drags the leading economy of the European Union into recession. After getting the final results stress test on energy supply system country’s Deputy Chancellor and Minister of Economy and Climate Protection, green Robert Habeckannounced last Monday that two of the three nuclear power plants still in operation will remain “in reserve” until April 2023.
It is intended that the decision be plan B in case the existing energy sources that feed private consumption and industry are in danger. That’s what Habeck calls the ministry”emergency useto “protect against a particular danger to supply”. Among the scenarios drawn, for example, coal plants that are reactivated to make up for the shortage of Russian gas seem to have stopped working due to the lack of coal, which often comes by river transport and has been very constrained by the drought this summer. So many other scenarios french nuclear power plants – Those who export energy to Germany – cease their activities or gas price Go oneverything seems to indicate that this will happen.
broken consensus
“There will be no extension of nuclear power or the construction of new nuclear power plants during this legislative period,” Robert Habeck said in a speech last Monday. For the eco-liberals of Los Verdes, a ‘no’ to nuclear power, which is still one of their main pillars, is non-negotiable.
There is a historical consensus in Germany about the abandonment of nuclear energy. this chernobyl disasterIt left its mark on public opinion in the country, with its environmental consequences affecting some German regions. this Fukushima disaster concluded Merkel’s government Declaring final blackout in 2022 in 2011. The then prime minister thus assumed one of the historic positions of Los Verdes and his party placed the CDU conservatives even more at the center of the political council.
This future is already here, but the consensus that has been built for decades seems to be that, with the severe energy crisis facing Germany, it has historically been heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels. Soviet Union first and from Russian Federation after that. While SPD chancellor Olaf School While we welcome Habeck’s decision, the liberals of the FDP, the third leg of the triumvirate that governs Germany, openly reject it. “It is now a logical matter to enable every kilowatt-hour without emissions,” he wrote on Twitter. Jogannes Vogel, FDP Vice President. Liberals are determined to keep the three nuclear power plants in southern Germany operational, the region with the least alternatives to renewable energies.
The Christian Democrats of the first opposition party, the CDU, do not allow internal divisions within the Government to harden their stance against the Executive. The Christian Democratic president, right-wing Friedrich Merz, said in a statement this Thursday: Bundestag Habeck’s “insane” decision.
Operators and environmentalists
Problems are piling up for Vice Chancellor Habeck, who has been the focus of criticism of the federal government in recent weeks. operator Isar-2 plantcompany Preussen Elktra, said last Wednesday that its plan to keep the plant in reserve until the middle of next year is “technically not feasible”, an announcement that Habeck is uncomfortable with. The green politician accuses the company of ignoring the information sent by his ministry.
Added to the criticism bar environmental organizationsFeeling betrayed by the eco-liberal minister. Greenpeace Germany considers it irresponsible not to close the three remaining nuclear power plants in the country on 31 December, as outlined in the tripartite government agreement. “Despite the energy supply crisis, it is irresponsible for Habeck to take on a major security risk with three old nuclear power plants,” he says. Martin KaiserHead of the environmental NGO in Germany.