As in Germany, the question of phasing out nuclear power is not a taboo subject in Belgium. Because if the seven partner parties of the Belgian government coalition managed at the end of December 2021 to agree on an agreement to withdraw from nuclear energy with the shutdown of seven reactors by 2025, provided that both “energy supply to the security country and” price controls “, the Belgian the government is now in the process of “re-evaluating” the situation. This is given the “completely different” geopolitical context compared to what it was at the end of December, said Prime Minister Alexander De Croo on Monday, March 7, in an interview with public radio RTBF.
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The Ecolo-Groen party, a vocal advocate of this scenario within the coalition, publicly acknowledged for the first time that two essential parameters (guaranteed security and regulated prices) have been weakened by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the possibility of sanctions hitting Western shocks. energy sector of Russia.
“Today, we clearly see that prices are rising and that independence of supply is no longer guaranteed, and therefore it is logical to wonder if the same question[about the conditions for phasing out nuclear energy — approx. answer]does not deserve the same question,” said Jean-Marc Nollet, co-president of Ecolo, Le Soir newspaper.
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“Plan B”: cut nuclear power, but not completely
In December, despite the agreement reached, the seven parties of the ruling coalition did not rule out “Plan B”, namely, maintaining the nuclear power capacity at the level of 2 gigawatt-hours (ie, two reactors). Jean-Marc Nollet pointed out that this “Plan B” could now be discussed “without taboo” and that his party no longer required “A” to remain the priority scenario. “We will not cling to the hierarchy that was defined in the government agreement and confirmed in the December agreement,” he added.
“The impact of the war on Ukraine is being taken into account,” said Energy Minister for the Environment Tinne van der Straeten. On Monday, the price of natural gas in the European market reached a new historical high due to fears of disruption to exports from Russia. Recall that in 2021, the EU imported 155 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia, that is, 45% of its imports and 40% of total consumption.
Faced with an explosion in energy prices, the state will issue a checkbook: 22 billion euros in 2022, says Le Maire.
Belgium is not so dependent on this single source of natural gas supplies, Alexandre de Croo said, but Russia has become a “less reliable” partner since the February 24 invasion of Ukraine. “At the European level, there is a whole process of disconnection from Russia in terms of energy,” added the leader of the Flemish liberals.
In an interview with Les Echos, Katherine MacGregor, Managing Director of Engie, explained that the closure of the two Belgian reactors operated by the group, scheduled for October 2022 and February 2023, had been prepared and that “going back to it would hardly be realistic.” . “This issue is not on the agenda,” she added.
Difficulties of compensation for the shutdown of nuclear power
Nuclear energy currently accounts for about 40% of electricity generation in Belgium. To make up for the shutdown of its seven reactors, the kingdom is planning, among other things, to build new gas-fired power plants to ensure the success of its energy transition. But permission for one of them, planned for the Flemish municipality of Vilvoorde, has not yet been issued. In early November, the Minister for the Environment of the Flemish region indeed denied permission to the French group Engie, the operator chosen at the end of the auction system developed at the federal level.
However, this plant is a key facility in the government system to ensure the security of supply. According to a government source interviewed in December, the alternative would be to select another unit not selected in the auction if it already has a permit.
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The agreement of the seven coalition partners also provides for an investment of about 100 million euros in research into next-generation nuclear power, namely small modular reactors (SMRs), presented as “safer”.
However, the exit from the Belgian nuclear power industry will not be free. As such, Energy Minister Tienne Van der Straten said that the dismantling of the Belgian reactors would be “one of the longest, most expensive and most delicate projects”, estimated at around 14 billion euros.
(with AFP)
latribune.fr
March 07, 2022, 16:51