The president of the employers' association Gesamtmetall, Stefan Wolf, has spoken out in favor of the continued operation of the three nuclear power plants still in operation in Germany and a debate about the construction of new reactors.
"I think it's absolutely necessary for nuclear power plants to run longer," Wolf told the newspapers of the Funke media group. An extended service life for the three nuclear power plants that are still in operation could significantly reduce the generation of electricity from gas and help secure the power supply when gas is really no longer available.
"But we also have to have a debate about the construction of new nuclear power plants," Wolf continued. "There are currently 50 new nuclear power plants being built worldwide, and the technology has advanced. The EU has only just labeled nuclear energy as green energy." Although the focus must be on renewable energies, these would not be sufficient to cover the entire electricity demand in Germany in the future
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. According to the law, however, they should be switched off at the end of 2022. Among other things, they are discussing letting them run a few months longer in a so-called stretching operation.
Investments in certain gas and nuclear power plants can be classified as climate-friendly in the EU from January 2023. At the beginning of July, the EU Parliament approved the inclusion of nuclear power and gas in the so-called taxonomy, subject to conditions.
