If the European Union is to take seriously the prospect of having an abundance of affordable energy, it must speed up its slow turn towards nuclear.
That is the view of an alliance of eleven pro-nuclear European governments, set up by France—which has the most nuclear-heavy energy mix in the EU—in 2023. The alliance aims to promote the energy source in Brussels, pointing out that it is more powerful than both renewables and fossil fuels.
They believe nuclear power should form part of the Commission’s affordable energy action plan. This aims to lower energy costs, as well as to “future-proof the energy system,” and will be presented on February 26th.
Its inclusion would have been unthinkable just two years ago, when Germany announced plans to close its three remaining atomic reactors and Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen branded nuclear as not “strategic” for EU decarbonisation.
But even now, it remains to be seen whether Brussels’ apparent shift can be rooted in action, or will remain in the realm of rhetoric.
The alliance of eleven member states this week asked the Commission for clarification on how it will “create a supporting ecosystem” for new nuclear facilities, including new plants and the extension of existing reactor operating lives.
A report from the World Nuclear Association earlier this year found that the EU depends on nuclear power for about a quarter of its electricity, and half its low-carbon electricity. But these figures do not align with the money spent by Brussels officials on research and development for nuclear compared to that for renewables, prompting Professor James Woudhysen to describe nuclear as European energy’s “ugly sister.”
