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• EOn and Statkraft finalize asset swap

  Germany's EOn group has finalized its agreement with Statkraft for a €4.5 billion ($6.2 billion) asset swap under which EOn will take total ownership of its Swedish subsidiary, EOn Sverige. As part of the agreement, EOn will acquire Statkraft's 44.6% stake in EOn Sverige, whose nuclear power assets are 29.6% of the Ringhals plant, 9.8% of the Forsmark and 54.5% of Oskarshamn. EOn said these nuclear assets make up 40% of the 6400 MWe of generation it now owns in Sweden. The transfer of ownership of the assets is expected to take place at the end of 2008, subject to the necessary approval by antitrust authorities. In addition to full control of EOn Sverige, EOn will also acquire a hydropower plant in Sweden. In return, government-owned Statkraft will receive 51 hydropower plants in Sweden, Germany and the UK, as well as five Swedish district heating plants and two gas-fired plants in Germany. In addition, Statkraft receives a structured gas storage and an electricity supply contract. Posted Jul 24 2008, 11:24 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany, EOn, Statkraft

• Germans split on nuclear phase out

  [Bild am Sonntag, 15 June] Almost half of Germans are against their country's phase out of nuclear energy, according to an opinion poll conducted by the Emnid research institute on behalf of the Bild am Sonntag newspaper. The survey found that 46% of Germans want the country to continue using nuclear energy; another 46% said they support the nuclear phase out policy, and 8% were undecided. The results indicated that support for the continued operation of the country's nuclear power plants is strongest amongst men (52%), supporters of the coalition of the Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union (65%), and supporters of the Free Democratic Party (57%). The poll questioned more than 500 people. Around one third of German electricity comes from nuclear, but the 17 reactors that produce it are scheduled for closure. A 2001 agreement between industry and the Social Democratic/Green government of the time effectively limited the lifespans of the plants to 32 years. Two reactors have already been shut down early, and although some generation time has been passed from older to newer plants for economic reasons, the agreement would eventually see all reactors shut down by 2022. Posted Jun 16 2008, 10:55 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany

• EnBW could fight for its oldest reactor

  German utility EnBW has reacted strongly against a government decision on the lifespans of its reactors. It said it intends to investigate the ruling and could take legal action. Posted Jun 13 2008, 08:18 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany, EnBW

• Merkel: Nuclear phase-out is wrong

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel has described her country's decision to close its nuclear plants as "absolutely wrong." The words were her most forthright to date. Posted Jun 10 2008, 11:14 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany

• Germany wants EU allowances for nuclear exit

  [Handelsblatt, 1 April] German economics minister, Michael Glos, is calling for the European Union (EU) to make allowances to Germany in its carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions due to its phase out of nuclear energy. He has written to environment minister Sigmar Gabriel saying that the country's planned nuclear phase out must be taken into account when the EU is allocating CO 2 permits to member states as part of its plan to reduce the region's emissions. "The higher emissions resulting from the phase out of nuclear energy must be considered by the European Union in the total budget of emissions trading," Glos said. He referred to the example of Sweden, which at the end of the 1990s secured itself special treatment due to its nuclear phase out. He said that Sweden was able to raise its CO 2 emissions quota by 4% from 1990 to 2012. Glos said that Sweden set a precedent from which Germany could now benefit. Under the EU plan, Germany must reduce its CO 2 emissions by 21% between 1990 and 2012, while the EU as a whole must cut its emissions by 8%. The EU aims to cut emission by 20% by 2020. According to Handlesblatt , the closure of all 17 nuclear reactors in Germany and their replacement with other energy sources would result in 150 million tonnes of CO 2 emissions annually. Posted Apr 02 2008, 12:54 PM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany

• Court upholds ban on extension of Biblis A

  [Reuters, 27 February] The Administrative Court in Kassel, Germany, ruled that RWE may not extend the operation of its Biblis A nuclear power reactor. Under Germany’s nuclear phase out agreement, the operating life of nuclear power plants is limited by total output. RWE had applied for the transfer of 30 TWh of output from the Mülheim-Kärlich plant, which operated for only a short time in the 1980s before being permanently closed, to Biblis A. Without the transfer, Biblis A will operate until about September 2009. German legislation regarding nuclear power plants does not allow for this transfer, the court said. The court upheld a decision by the Environment Ministry that barred RWE from transferring unused generation capacity from one nuclear plant to another. RWE said that it plans to appeal the verdict at the Federal Administrative Court. The ruling coalition government is split between the Christian Democrats, who support an extension of the lifetime of nuclear reactors, and the Social Democrats, whose Sigmar Gabriel heads the Environment Ministry and opposes any extension. The latest ruling reduces hopes that RWE will be able to keep Biblis A operating until after the next general election in 2009, when an outright win by the Christian Democrats could result in a change in Germany's nuclear phase-out policy. Posted Feb 28 2008, 11:05 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany, RWE

• German multilateral enrichment project up for discussion

  A German proposal for a multilateral uranium enrichment centre to be established on neutral territory is under discussion at the IAEA. It is one of several ideas to assure supplies and strengthen the non-proliferation regime. Posted Feb 19 2008, 12:49 PM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany

• Germany's nuclear phase-out 'isn't comprehensible'

  [Energia.gr, 18 February; Reuters, 19 February] The head of EOn has called for a review of Germany's policy for the phase-out of nuclear power. Wulf Bernotat, EOn's CEO, speaking at an energy congress in Essen, said: "The nuclear exit of a highly developed country such as Germany isn't comprehensible in other countries." He said that a broad energy mix is required to meet future energy demands while meeting environmental targets. Bernotat noted, "We need all (energy sources), including renewable energies, nuclear, clean coal." According to Bernotat, Germany's existing nuclear power plants help reduce the country's annual carbon dioxide emissions by some 160 million tonnes. Meanwhile, Germany's head energy regulator, Matthias Kurth, has warned that Europe risks power shortages if it does not press ahead with new power plant projects to replace and add to aging generation capacity. He said that coal-powered plants were being cancelled because operators feared tougher emissions regulations or because of opposition from local communities due to pollution concerns. Kurth said that Germany had planned to replace 20,000 MWe of aging power plant capacity by 2012, but his authority was only aware of projects underway with a combined of capacity of 7000 MWe. Bernotat warned that EOn may not build an 1100 MWe power plant at Staudinger in Hesse state if local politicians and residents remain opposed. Posted Feb 19 2008, 12:22 PM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany

• EnBW chief: Speak with one voice in Germany

  The German power industry should speak up with a single for what it wants, Hans-Peter Villis, CEO of EnBW, told the newspaper Handelsblatt . Posted Jan 22 2008, 11:32 AM by World Nuclear News Filed under: Germany