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Phasing out nuclear energy – stress-free

Nuclear power plant operators bear the costs associated with the nuclear phase-out, i.e. the costs for dismantling power plants and the disposal of nuclear waste.

Germany will stop producing nuclear energy in seven years time. The eight nuclear power plants that are still on the grid will be phased out one after another until the end of 2022. Afterwards, these power plants have to be dismantled, and the nuclear waste has to be disposed of in a safe manner. The costs will be borne by the parties responsible – namely the operators of the nuclear power plants.

"Parents are held liable for their children"

Last week, the German cabinet adopted draft legislation on extended liability for the dismantling of nuclear power plants and the disposal of nuclear waste in order to ensure that the necessary financing is in place and all stakeholders can plan ahead. “Nuclear plant operators will be held liable for the costs of dismantling and waste management, today and in the future”, Federal Minister Gabriel said on the cabinet decision.

The new rules ensure that large utility companies will be held liable in the long term for the dismantling of nuclear power plants and the disposal of nuclear waste – even if the company is restructured. The new law closes a loophole and makes sure that parent companies will be held liable in the long term for the debt incurred by their subsidiaries. The principle – familiar to everyone in Germany – that ‘parents are held liable for their children’ will be followed. “We are minimising the risk of the public sector and tax payers having to pay for the nuclear phase-out”, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Sigmar Gabriel said.

Furthermore, a commission made up of 19 experts will conduct a review of the financing of the nuclear phase-out. The commission will be chaired by Matthias Platzeck, Ole von Beust and Jürgen Trittin. The commission is to come up with recommendations on how the decommissioning, dismantling and the disposal of nuclear waste can be ensured, and can be designed in a way that allows companies to remain viable in the long term and therefore capable of paying for the dismantling of nuclear power plants and waste disposal. These recommendations are to be presented by January 2016.

Nuclear power plants pass stress test

The results of the so-called stress tests were published the week before last. Auditors took a close look at the provisions made by utilities to account for the costs associated with the nuclear phase-out. The stress tests show that the companies concerned have made sufficient provisions to cover all of the costs. They have done so in compliance with the relevant rules. The companies’ combined assets cover the costs of the decommissioning of the nuclear power plants and the disposal of the radioactive waste.

How much will it cost to phase out nuclear energy?

The provisions made by the companies concerned amount to 38.3 billion euros. The average costs for dismantling a reactor are pinned at 857 million euros. However, the total costs of phasing out nuclear energy, including the disposal of radioactive waste, depend on a number of factors that are likely to keep changing. It is expected that it will take until the end of the century for all nuclear waste to be stored permanently.

Until then, costs will accrue for the decommissioning and dismantling of power plants, for containers, transportation, industrial waste and intermediate storage. In other words: our current calculations are based on forecasts and scenarios for the future. Thanks to the stress test, these forecasts and scenarios, and the methods for assessing the costs for the dismantling of nuclear power plants and the disposal of radioactive waste have been made transparent for the first time.

And then there were eight

From Brokdorf in the North to Gundremmingen in the South, there are still eight German reactors connected to the grid. They are helping to bridge the gap until we can ensure a reliable energy supply using wind and solar power and until the necessary infrastructure for transporting electricity is in place.

This year, the nuclear power plant in Grafenrheinfeld was taken off the grid. Gundremmingen B will be phased out in 2017, followed by Philippsburg 2 by 2019, and Grohnde, Gundremmingen C and Brokdorf by the end of 2021. Time for the most modern plants, Isar 2, Emsland and Neckarwestheim 2, will be up in 2022 at the latest.