Nuclear energy in Europe: Who is for and against it and why?
Steam rises from the cooling towers of the Grohnde nuclear power plant in Germany, in December 2021.
By Osama Rizvi
Published on 23/12/2023 – 07:15
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Euronews Business looks at the pros and cons of nuclear energy and which European countries are for and against it.
Owing to its catastrophic history, the word ‘nuclear’ often turns heads with many reluctant to embrace it as a reliable and safe form of energy.
Some argue that, unlike fossil fuels, it is one of the cleanest sources of energy as it does not result in the emission of greenhouse gases. However, on the other hand, nuclear waste remains hazardous for thousands of years and has long lasting environmental concerns.
Nonetheless, several European countries consider nuclear energy essential for their economic survival and see it as one of the best options with regards to the climate change challenge.
Countries that promote nuclear energy
Since the daunting incident of the Fukushima Incident that happened in Japan in 2011, Europe remains divided over the possession of ever increasing nuclear power plants.
Italy and Lithuania have completely phased out nuclear energy for electricity generation. France, however, has been an advocate of nuclear energy as a low carbon source. In addition, Bulgaria, Italy, Croatia, Finland, Hungary and Poland have supported France with its nuclear ambition. Out of 163 nuclear reactors in Europe as of August 2023, 56 units were in France alone.
Nuclear energy has been well established in Europe as there are operational nuclear plants in 13 of the 27 member states and it provides around a quarter of total electricity to Europe.
Keeping in mind the oil and gas uncertainty, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a $57bn plan to build six next-generation nuclear reactors in the country, starting by 2028.
Countries that oppose nuclear energy
Belgium and Germany, along with Switzerland and Spain, are the countries that plan to phase out their nuclear industries keeping in view its hazardous implications and challenges.
These countries have planned to abandon their nuclear energy plans entirely but still refrain from completely phasing it out given the changing geopolitics of energy.
According to the European Commission, opposition to nuclear power has created a 25% overall decline in electricity produced by splitting atoms in the 27-country European Union from 2006 to 2020.
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More hope for nuclear energy as technology improves
Interestingly, in one of the recent surveys published by the Hungarian Foundation, the growing positive perception of nuclear energy in all EU member states can be seen. According to its result, the percentage of opposition to nuclear energy has fallen from 26% to 15%.
The credit of this transformed perception regarding nuclear energy can be given to the advantages of it as it significantly helps to reduce the carbon footprint and minimise greenhouse gas emissions, consequently securing future energy sustainability.
Moreover, nuclear energy has remarkably high energy density, making it more efficient than the other alternative sources. Unlike solar and wind resources, nuclear energy plants operate independently without relying on the weather conditions. Nuclear energy can serve to be a long-term energy solution making people less reliant on oil and gas fluctuations and availability.
Challenges remain and sentiment divided
Now looking at the other side of the coin, let us not be oblivious of the fact that the chances of nuclear accidents like Chernobyl and Fukushima, can have a devastating impact on global communities.
The infrastructure of nuclear power plants also requires a lot of investment and development before they can be operational. Once operational, the threat of its waste remains as its safe disposal can be a daunting challenge. Consequently, throughout Europe, the sentiment regarding nuclear energy is divided.
