Three German nuclear power plants are scheduled to continue operating until April

The three German nuclear power plants will remain in operation until April 15. Acting on his authority to issue guidelines, German Chancellor Olaf Schulz yesterday ordered the creation of the legal basis for the operation of the Isar 2, Neckarwestheim 2 and Emsland nuclear power plants after December 31, until April 15, 2023 at the latest. It ended a week-long feud between coalition partners FDP and Greens.

Lindner: ‘The chancellor has now created clarity’

The FDP leader and Finance Minister Christian Lindner welcomed the decision: “It is in the vital interest of our country and its economy that we retain all power generation capacity this winter. The chancellor has now made it clear,” Lindner said in Berlin. The additional use of the Emsland nuclear power plant “is an important contribution to the stability of grid, electricity costs and climate protection.” The proposal therefore finds the “full support of the Liberal Democrats.”

Green Vice Chancellor Habek wants to add a strong word

With his decision, Schultz ignored a Congressional decision by the Greens. According to a proposal from Economy Minister Robert Habeck, they retained only the Isar 2 and Nikarostim 2 nuclear power plants, but wanted to shut down the Emsland reactor at the beginning of the year. Habeck made it clear last night that he would be subject to the word of the Chancellor’s authority. Scholz used “maximum power” to solve a “stuck situation”. “With the Chancellor’s authority to issue guidelines, today’s method was shown for how to get out of this,” ARD’s vice chancellor said yesterday. “And that’s the path I’m good at working and living on.”

“Now there is clarity,” Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (the Greens) wrote on Twitter. The matter remains with the phasing out of nuclear weapons. Germany will finally stop nuclear power on April 15, 2023. There will be no extension of service life and there will be no new fuel rods. “Although there is no realistic and technical reason for this.”

However, Habeck expects the Greens parliamentary group to also support the legislative changes needed after the chancellor’s decision. Germany and Europe are in serious crisis. “So putting the government at risk in this situation doesn’t seem to fit me at all,” Habek said. “It has been a long time, and that is why it is good to say today how the Social Democratic Party is positioning itself (…)”.