Germany shuts three of its last six nuclear plants

• 2 years ago (2022-01-03)
• David Flin

Europe 1061 Nuclear 639

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Germany has closed three of its last six nuclear power stations ahead of schedule. The reactors at Brokdorf, Grohnde, and Gundremmingen C, run by E.ON and RWE , shut down at the end of 2021 after three and a half decades in operation.

The German government has said that the last three plants – Isar 2, Emsland, and Neckarwestheim II – will be shut down by the end of 2022.

PreussenElektra , which runs the Brokdorf and Grohnde plants, said in a statement that the two plants had been shut down shortly before midnight on 31 December, 2021. RWE said the Gundremmingen C plant was shut down during the evening of the same day.

Guido Knott, CEO of PreussenElektra, said: “We have made a decisive contribution to the secure, climate-friendly, and reliable supply of electricity in Germany for decades.”

The six nuclear power plants contributed around 12 per cent of electricity production in Germany in 2021. Renewables contributed almost 41 per cent, coal around 28 per cent, and gas around 15 per cent. Germany aims to have renewables meet 80 per cent of power demand by 2030 by expanding wind and solar power infrastructure.