What will happen if the natural gas can? It is mainly used for heating, but also contributes around ten percent to electricity production in Germany. If you were to rely on nuclear energy for longer, you could use more gas for heating. There are currently three nuclear power plants still connected to the grid in Germany: Emsland in Lower Saxony, Isar 2 in Bavaria and Neckarwestheim 2 in Baden-Württemberg. They deliver around 30 terawatt hours of electricity per year and account for around five percent of German electricity production. According to the law, however, they should be switched off at the end of 2022. Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) ordered a new stress test for the power supply. According to the ministry, the results should be available in the next few weeks.
There are different positions in the debate about longer lifetimes for nuclear reactors in Germany. Above all, the CSU and industry have increased the pressure on the traffic light government. The President of the Employers’ Association of Gesamtmetall, Stefan Wolf, spoke at the weekend in favor of the continued operation of the three nuclear power plants still in operation in Germany – he also wants to talk about the construction of new reactors. Gesamtmetall President Wolf told the newspapers of the Funke media group that he considered a longer term absolutely necessary. In this way, the generation of electricity from gas can be significantly reduced and help to secure the power supply when gas is no longer available. “But we also have to have a debate about the construction of new nuclear power plants,” he said. “There are currently 50 new nuclear power plants being built worldwide, and the technology has advanced.”
Dobrindt considers nuclear power conceivable for at least another five years
In the “Welt am Sonntag” Dobrindt called for a decision on “reasonable energy”. Referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said: “We will be exposed to Putin’s brutal attempt to destabilize the West through energy terror for a long time to come. In this situation, lifetime extensions for nuclear power by at least another five years are conceivable.” Other politicians from the Union and FDP also called for longer lifetimes in order to bridge possible power bottlenecks in the winter in the wake of the Ukraine war.
Above all, the Greens, who co-govern in the traffic light, have a hard time with the topic. You had promised in the program for the 2021 federal election: “We will complete the nuclear phase-out in Germany.” Should an emergency situation become apparent, several Green politicians have not ruled out “extended operation” with the existing fuel elements of nuclear power plants that are still running. Green co-leader Ricarda Lang has rejected a return to nuclear power. She said on Sunday in the ZDF summer interview with a view to statements by Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP), according to which nuclear power plants would have to remain online until 2024 if necessary: ”What Christian Lindner wants there is nothing more than getting back into nuclear power. And that will definitely not happen with us.”
Climate activist Neubauer for stretching
Lang’s party colleague and former Federal Environment Minister Jürgen Trittin (Greens) also emphasized that a stretching operation is also an extension of the service life. Trittin spoke out against it. He thinks a party congress is necessary to clarify the Greens’ position on longer nuclear power plant runtimes, as he told the “Tagesspiegel”.
