BERLIN – German chancellor Angela Merkel’s government has made progress in negotiations to decide how long nuclear power plants will remain in operation, but a full deal has yet to be reached, a government official said yesterday.
“There is progress on how the lifespan extension of nuclear power plants can be examined on an individual, differentiated basis,” the official said, referring to proposals to base the extension on plant age and safety standards.
Dr Merkel is meeting senior government officials to end a dispute over the lifespan of the country’s 17 active nuclear power stations, due to be closed by 2021 at the latest under current legislation.
The topic has sown division in her ruling coalition and has pitted operators against German environmentalists, some 1,000 of whom staged a protest outside the chancellery yesterday.
On the table are extensions ranging from 10 to 15 years, with economy minister Rainer Brüderle wanting the top end of the range while environment minister Norbert Röttgen seeks a shorter extension. Before the meeting, Mr Brüderle said he was confident the government would come to a quick decision, just as German utility RWE’s chief executive spoke out for a 20-year extension – beyond the maximum timeframe mentioned by Dr Merkel.
The final agreement will be the cornerstone of Dr Merkel’s broader energy strategy, to be decided later this month.
Dr Merkel has invested much in the strategy, which must be worked out smoothly if she is to reverse her government’s slump in the polls in time for important elections early next year. That will not be easy, as the nuclear subject is a minefield in Germany where the public is sceptical about safety and nuclear waste storage. Yesterday’s meeting may bring a solution to the form and frequency of levying a so-called “nuclear fuel element tax” of €2.3 billion a year, which the government wants to boost budgets, but which utilities oppose. – (Reuters)