BERLIN, Apr 15 Despite the crisis in the energy sector and criticized by supporters of nuclear energy, the country's last three nuclear power plants (NPPs) will shut down this Saturday in Germany.
«April 15, the era of the use of nuclear energy in Germany comes to an end. Further work beyond this date is impossible for legal, technical and economic reasons,» the government website said in a statement.
Delayed end Back in 2011, the German government, led by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel, decided to completely phase out nuclear power by 2022. The final argument for such a decision was the accident at the Japanese nuclear power plant «Fukushima».
The promise to abandon nuclear energy was also inherited by the new government headed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, becoming one of the obligatory points of the coalition agreement between the ruling parties.
What the new German government could not reckon with in those years was the fact that it would itself refuse cheap gas from Russia, which, according to calculations, was supposed to make up for the lack of energy after the shutdown of the nuclear power plant. In view of this circumstance and after several meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Scholz government last winter decided to extend the operation of the last three nuclear power plants (Isar-2, Neckarwestheim-2 and Emsland) until April 15.
Criticism The opposition, the government of Bavaria (where Isar 2 is located), as well as a number of experts, regularly criticized the decision to stop the operation of the nuclear power plant.
Thus, the leader of the opposition party Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Friedrich Merz, in connection with this decision last year, told the DPA news agency that the government could face «legitimation problems» due to its energy policy.
In early April, Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (chairman of the CSU party) in an interview with Die Welt criticized German Economy Minister Robert Habeck (Green Party), who approved the continued operation of nuclear power plants in Ukraine, but not in Germany. Khabek had previously stated that «it's normal» if Ukraine, while ensuring safety, continues to operate its nuclear power plants. Söder has previously repeatedly stated the need to extend the operation of nuclear power plants in order to avoid interruptions in electricity.
On April 11, President of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) Peter Adrian told the Rheinische Post newspaper that Germany has not yet ensured the reliability of energy supply both in the short and long term. In this regard, he noted that now a significant part of the German economy supports the idea that existing nuclear power plants should operate until the end of the energy crisis.
On the eve of the blackout, more than 20 scientists addressed Scholz with an open letter, where they called for extending the operation of the nuclear power plant in the country «in the interests of the citizens of Germany, Europe and the whole world.» Scientists explained that the process of generating electricity at nuclear power plants does not harm the climate, which is now an important factor, and could also be an important help in the coming energy crisis.
The last three nuclear power plants in Germany covered up to 5% of Germany's total electricity demand. In the past years, three other nuclear power plants in the country have already been permanently closed.