| NEWS
Germany closes its last three NPPs
remaining NPPs to continue operating. A draft amendment to the Atomic Energy Act enabled them to operate until 15 April 2023 at the latest. The closure of the last three plans has not been universally welcomed. Jens Spahn, deputy parliamentary leader of the CDU said the nuclear exit “is a black day for climate protection in Germany. While the FDP had called for the plants to be kept on standby at the very least. “Shutting down the world’s most modern and safest nuclear power plants in Germany is a dramatic mistake that will have painful economic and ecological consequences,” said FDP deputy leader Wolfgang Kubicki. A recent YouGov study published found only
Above: Isar 2, near Landshut in Bavaria is among the last three of Germany’s reactors to be closed down Photo credit: footageclips/
Shutterstock.com
Germany has permanently shut down its final three commercial nuclear power reactors. This completes its delayed nuclear phaseout despite the ongoing European energy crisis and last-minute appeals for reactor lifetimes to be extended. E.ON’s Isar 2, EnBW’s Neckarwestheim 2 and RWE’s Emsland plants made up some 6% of Germany’s total energy mix comprising some 4,055 MWe of capacity. In 2011, following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in Japan, Germany decided to phase out nuclear power. Until then, Germany had generated one-quarter of its electricity from nuclear energy with 17 reactors. The 13th amendment of the Nuclear Power
Act was put into effect and eight nuclear units were permanently shut down in 2012. These included EnBW’s Phillipsburg unit 1 and Neckarwestheim unit 1; E.ON’s Isar unit 1 and Unterweser; RWE’s Biblis A&B and Vattenfall’s Brunsbüttel and Krümmel (both already closed). The remaining nine reactors were to close by the end of 2022. E.ON’s Grafenrheinfeld closed in 2015; RWE’s Grundremmingen B in 2017; EnBW’s Phillippsburg unit 2 in 2019; and Vattenfalls Brokdorf, E.ON’s Grohnde and RWE’s Gundremmingen C in 2021. Two older reactors – E.ON’s Stade NPP and ENBW’s Obrigheim had already been shut down in 2003 and 2005, respectively. However, in October 2022, in the face of
Europe’s growing energy crisis following the imposition of sanctions on Russian gas supplies, the German federal cabinet approved an executive decision allowing the three
a quarter of Germans wanted the remaining plants to be switched off, with a third supporting a temporary extension and another third an indefinite delay to closure. The survey showed that even 44% of Green voters did not want an immediate shutdown. Meanwhile, Bavarian Premier Markus Söder, chair of the Christian Social Union (CSU), has proposed that his southern German state should assume control of the Isar 2 NPP. He told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper that this would require an amendment to the Atomic Energy Act to hand control of nuclear power from the federal to the state level. “Bavaria is, therefore, demanding that
the federal government give states the responsibility for the continued operation of nuclear power. Until the [energy] crisis ends and while the transition to renewables has not succeeded, we must use every form of energy until the end of the decade. Bavaria is ready to face up to this responsibility.” He added: “It can’t be that a country of engineers like Germany gives up any claim to shaping the future and international competitiveness.” Söder said the ruling coalition was acting
“extremely naively and negligently” by hoping that next winter will be as mild as the last. He noted that the regulator, the Federal Network Agency, has warned of an energy supply crunch next winter, despite Germany securing fresh supplies of liquified natural gas to offset the lack of Russian natural gas. KernD, an association representing the
interests of nuclear technology in Germany, said “In view of climate policy and the very unfavourable development in electricity generation last year — due to a sharp increase in coal-fired power generation — the shutdown of three functioning nuclear power plants with a low greenhouse gas footprint beggars belief. Considering security of supply, environmental and climate protection, as well as competitiveness, more nuclear power would make more sense than none at all.” ■
round up
NEW BUILD DURING A VISIT to Moscow, Peter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs & Trade following talks with Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev, said agreement had been reached on to amend the construction and financing contract for the Paks-II NPP project.
FOUR POTENTIAL LOCATIONS across Estonia which could accommodate a nuclear power plant have been identified by a finance ministry analysis. This depends on whether it is decided to construct a plant. The four locations are at Toila, Ida-Viru County, Kunda, Lääne-Viru County, Loksa, Harju County and Varbla, Pärnu County.
A PROTOTYPE OF the main circulating pump (MCP) unit for the Brest-OD-300 reactor plant has been delivered to the site of the pilot demonstration power complex (ODEK) at Russia’s Siberian Chemical Combine (part of Rosatom’s Fuel Company TVEL) in Seversk, Tomsk Region.
US GEORGIA POWER says unit 3 of the Vogtle NPP has been connected to the grid. Vogtle 3 reached first criticality early in March and is expected to begin commercial operation in May or June. Vogtle 4 began hot functional tests in March and is expected to enter service in late 2023 or early 2024. Both are 1,117 MWe Westinghouse AP1000 reactors.
ENGINEERING SURVEYS HAVE begun at Russia’s Beloyarsk NPP site, which will form the basis for the Investment Feasibility Study (OBIN – Obosnovaniya Investitsii) for the construction of the world’s first 1,200 MWe fast neutron power unit. The BN-1200M is planned to be constructed as unit 5 at Beloyarsk.
ROSATOM HAS RECEIVED permission from the Egyptian Nuclear & Radiological Regulatory Authority (ENRRA) to build unit 3 of the El Dabaa. The decision was made at a meeting headed by Board Chairman Samy Shaaban after ENRRA experts confirmed the safety of unit 3 following a comprehensive inspection.
THE UK ENVIRONMENT Agency (EA) has issued three new environmental permits to NNB Generation Company (Sizewell C) Limited for the new NPP planned at Sizewell in Suffolk. Sizewell C Limited applied to the EA for the permits in May 2020. The EA consulted on the application from July to October 2020 and on their proposed decision and draft permits from July to September 2022.
www.neimagazine.com | May 2023 | 7
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49
