The government has unveiled a plan for dismantling nuclear power plants and managing waste, centered on the VII General Radioactive Waste Plan. The document confirms the orderly shutdown of seven reactors that remained active from 2027 through 2035, reflecting the agreement reached with operators in March 2019.
Under the program, Almaraz will be the first to halt operations. Reactor I is scheduled to stop in November 2027, followed by Reactor II in October 2028. Later steps include Ascó I in October 2030, Cofrentes in November 2030, Ascó again in September 2032, Vandellós II in February 2035, and Trillo in May 2035.
The plan envisions dismantling the facilities three years after their permanent shutdown. It also contemplates a centralized storage facility for spent fuel and high-level waste, an option currently blocked, or seven decentralized temporary storage facilities at the sites themselves. The waste would be held temporarily for six decades while the final solution, a Deep Geological Repository, stores it at depths between 500 meters and one kilometer for thousands of years. Finland is noted as the first country to pursue such a repository.
The estimated cost to shut down the nuclear fleet and safely manage the waste can reach up to 26.5 billion euros. While the government maintains there is no turning back on this schedule, some experts argue for reevaluating the plan due to Spain’s reliance on other energy sources, such as natural gas, a dependence highlighted by the Ukraine conflict that significantly drove electricity prices higher.
In Extremadura, the board has already indicated that the plant owners—Iberdrola, Naturgas, and Endesa—would be those seeking more operational life for Almaraz. If they pursue this, regional authorities would back the decision, though the owners may seek government financial assistance, a concern raised on multiple occasions.
waste
Back in 1984, the state established Enresa, a public company charged with radioactive waste management and the dismantling of nuclear facilities. The only site that has seen substantial decommissioning is the Jose Cabrera facility in Almonacid de Zorita, located in Guadalajara.
Enresa explains that the most challenging aspect is handling the active parts of the installation, especially the reactor’s internal components and the container that houses them. Spent fuel also represents a highly active element of a shut-down plant. These tasks are inherently complex and demanding.
The Valencian firm GDES, with about 1700 workers and a turnover of roughly 124.5 million euros in 2021, operates a division dedicated to nuclear plant dismantling. The company recently completed segmentation work on the Barsebäck-1 plant in Sweden and reached a milestone by dismantling a 600 MW reactor. José Tomás Ruiz, vice president of GDES and director of Nuclear Services, emphasizes that decommissioning is a long-range endeavor, planned years before a plant ceases operation. He notes that preparation begins long before exploitation ends and stresses the importance of meticulous planning.
Enresa states that work begins roughly three years after a unit is cut, as spent fuel must cool in cooling pools. Decommissioning itself can extend up to ten years. Ruiz describes dismantling as more than tearing down buildings; it involves removing large equipment and, due to radiological conditions, employing underwater cutting techniques alongside robotic systems. Materials must be managed to minimize radioactive waste, and every step is governed by nuclear safety authorities, ensuring safe operations and environmental protection even in the most demanding conditions.