With Germany scheduled to shut down its three remaining nuclear power plants on the 15th, more than half of Germans oppose shutting down nuclear power plants, a survey showed.
According to a survey conducted on the 11th (local time) by German polling agency Insa at the request of local media Bild am Sontag, 52% of respondents said they opposed the closure of the three remaining nuclear power plants. Only 37% supported the decision to close these three nuclear power plants.
Germany is currently operating three nuclear power plants, including Necavestheim 2, Isar 2, and Emsland, but they are scheduled to close on the 15th.
The German government, which has been pursuing nuclear power plant closure since 2002, originally planned to shut down all three remaining nuclear power plants by the end of last year following the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011. However, due to Russia’s cut off gas supply due to the war in Ukraine, the government decided to extend the operation of these nuclear power plants until April 15th.
Peter Adrian, director of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK), has asked the political world to extend the operation period of nuclear power plants. Although natural gas prices have fallen recently, energy costs remain high for most businesses.
The German government expects that it will be able to meet its energy needs through renewable energy without nuclear power, but many citizens are questioning whether renewable energy will be able to meet their domestic energy needs.
Furthermore, the German government plans to close all coal power plants by 2030. Coal accounts for a third of Germany’s electricity production, and its consumption has risen as gas supplies from Russia have declined.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that four to five wind turbines will need to be installed every day for the next few years to meet domestic energy needs. However, it is pointed out that this is a very big task considering that Germany installed an average of less than two wind turbines per day last year.
Germany has shut down 16 nuclear power plants since 2003. The remaining three nuclear power plants, scheduled to be shut down on the 15th, accounted for 30.8% of Germany’s electricity production in 1997, but now supply 6%.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.