Berlin, Dusseldorf On Tuesday evening, the nuclear power plant operators Eon and EnBW agreed with the federal government on key points for a possible and limited continued operation of the Isar 2 and Neckarwestheim piles – beyond the end of the year. According to the exit plan, the two remaining German nuclear power plants should actually be shut down on December 31st.
Due to the tense supply situation on the gas and electricity market, the transmission system operators came to the conclusion in a current stress test that it makes sense to continue operating the power plants for a limited period of time. This applies in particular to the very tense supply situation in neighboring France.
“If this development is not reversed, we will leave Isar 2 and Neckarwestheim online in the first quarter of 2023. As of today, I think that’s necessary,” said Economics Minister Robert Habeck at a press conference in Berlin on Tuesday evening.
For technical reasons, many reactors in the neighboring country cannot currently run. That is why Germany is currently exporting more electricity to France than usual. “Today I have to say that the data from France suggest that we will then call up the reserve,” explained the Vice Chancellor.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
Last week, France presented new data on its expected own electricity production. These turned out to be significantly worse than expected. Habeck considers it unlikely that the situation in France will change fundamentally.
Fuel rods in Neckarwestheim last until April
“Eon has always stated that it will support the federal government’s efforts to ensure a secure energy supply as far as we can. That’s why we were always willing to talk about a possible continued operation of the Isar 2 nuclear power plant, if desired by the federal government,” the Essen-based energy company clarified on Tuesday.
Now they are ready to keep this promise: “Isar 2 is one of the most reliable systems in the world and can make a valuable contribution to a secure energy supply in this crisis.”
Most recently, there had been problems with a leaking valve at the southern German kiln. In October, the power plant should therefore be idle for a week so that the error can be rectified. In this way, safe continued operation beyond the end of the year is possible, Eon assures.
In the case of Isar 2, the existing fuel rods will last at least two more months until the end of March. The inventories at the Neckarwestheim power plant managed by EnBW even last until mid-April.
>> Read also: Nuclear waste right next door – How Switzerland is fueling the German repository debate
“The power plant will definitely be shut down on December 31, 2022. Should the federal government decide that further electricity production is necessary, the reactor core of the plant will be reassembled with already existing, partially used fuel elements in order to ensure electricity production of up to 1.7 billion kilowatt hours after restart through this optimization step Baden-Württemberg companies.
At the same time, EnBW made it clear that this implementation was very demanding. So now all the prepared measures for the phase-out planned for years would have to be switched to continued operation in the operational reserve.
By the beginning of December at the latest, the federal government must officially confirm whether electricity production in the piles will be necessary beyond the end of 2022. Habeck now seems to be assuming this.
Too many French nuclear power plants are offline
The main reason for the turnaround is overly optimistic assessments by the French government. Two weeks ago, she had assured that there would be no electricity shortage in France during the winter. However, the French forecasts are also based on the fact that a number of nuclear power plants will be restarted in autumn and winter.
Most recently, only about half of the country’s 56 reactors were online due to maintenance. French Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne said the government will ensure that energy company EDF “meets its plan to ramp up its nuclear reactors”.
According to the Federal Ministry of Economics, the originally specified 50 gigawatts of output from French nuclear power plants in winter can no longer be assumed. The French network operator is now only expecting 45 gigawatts and only for two weeks in January.
“That puts us in our very critical stress test scenario,” says Habeck. But it goes even further down, at the end of February only 40 gigawatts are available. “My French colleague has confirmed to me in writing that these are also the government’s assumptions,” said the Green politician. And while France is usually an electricity exporter, the energy supply had to be secured in Germany through purchases.
Habeck makes a U-turn
Already at the beginning of September, the four German transmission system operators pointed out exactly such a scenario when presenting the results of their stress test. 50Hertz, Amprion, Tennet and TransnetBW carried out the stress test. In three scenarios, they determined whether sufficient electricity would be available at all hours over the coming months. “Our message is very clear: It makes sense and is necessary to use all generation capacities,” said 50Hertz boss Stefan Kapferer.
At the time, Habeck saw things differently. The network stress test shows that nuclear power is not a solution; “Therefore there is nothing to be said for a stretching operation. Nuclear power is a high-risk technology and must be ended.”
According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, this should continue to apply to the Lingen reactor in Emsland. According to the results of the stress test, Habeck had moved the Neckarwestheim 2 and Isar 2 nuclear power plants to a so-called operational reserve – without generally postponing the nuclear phase-out. There was a lot of criticism for this given the tense supply situation. Now it is very likely that it will continue to operate for a limited period of time.
Incidentally, the liability for the respective system continues to lie with the responsible operator. The costs for continued operation are reimbursed by the federal government. Should it continue to operate, the proceeds would be offset at the end and the money paid back to the state, Eon assures.
More: Stress test for the energy transition: Why the nuclear phase-out is no longer untouchable