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The runtime extension for all three of Germany鈥檚 remaining nuclear power plants will help reduce the country鈥檚 gas consumption and save up to three million tonnes of CO2 emissions, according to energy market consultancy Enervis. The extension until mid-April 2023 announced by chancellor Olaf Scholz is 鈥渁n overdue and necessary decision鈥� from an energy market perspective, analyst Mirko Schlossarczyk pv magazine. Enervis calculated that keeping the three plants on the grid beyond their scheduled end date on 31 December this year would cut gas consumption in power production by about six terawatt hours (TWh), and also reduce the need for gas and electricity imports to Germany. 鈥淭he likelihood of bottleneck situations is much smaller,鈥� Schlossarczyk said, adding that emissions would be saved because the nuclear plants substitute power production with hard coal plants. However, the effect on power prices is likely to remain small, reducing prices by about 2.5 percent on average next year, the analyst said.

Renewable power industry association BEE that the runtime extension could also have adverse effects on energy supply security, as the sustained feed-in from reactors into the grid means less grid capacity is available for renewable power installations. 鈥淭he ad hoc decision to continue operations will neither solve the price nor the supply crisis,鈥� BEE head Simone Peter said. Especially in wind-rich northern Germany, continued nuclear power production could push renewables and their price-dampening effects out of the market, she argued. In 2021, 5.8 TWh of renewable power had to be curtailed due to grid congestion, Peter added. However, Scholz鈥檚 decision would also make clear that nuclear power 鈥渄efinitively has no future鈥� in Germany after April.

Scholz earlier this week said his government would pave the way for prolonging the runtime of all three instead of only two of Germany鈥檚 remaining reactors, with the last plant going offline no later than聽 15 April next year. The chancellor intervened to settle a dispute about the delayed end of nuclear power in the country, which has kept his coalition government in conflict for several months. However, the decision taken in light of the European energy crisis means the nuclear exit will not be changed in principle, and no new fuel rods will be purchased.