EU's 143 nuclear plants to undergo quake tests
Source: Agencies |
March 16, 2011, Wednesday
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Shocked into action by Japan's atomic crisis, European energy officials agreed yesterday to apply stress tests on nuclear power plants and Germany moved to switch off seven aging reactors - one of them permanently.
Energy ministers, nuclear regulators and industry officials meeting in Brussels found "general agreement" on the need for such tests to check whether the European Union's 143 nuclear plants could withstand earthquakes and other emergencies, EU Energy Commissioner Guenter Oettinger said.
Oettinger said the tests should follow "strict standards" that would be set by the second half of the year. He invited non-EU nations, including Russia and Switzerland, to join the initiative.
Earlier yesterday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that seven reactors that went into operation before 1980 would be offline for three months while Europe's biggest economy reconsiders its plans to extend the life of its atomic power plants. One, the Neckarwestheim I reactor, will be shut down permanently.
A previous government decided a decade ago to shut all 17 German nuclear reactors by 2021, but Merkel's administration last year moved to extend their lives by an average of 12 years. That decision was suspended for three months on Monday. Merkel noted that not all are currently on the grid, because of maintenance work.
Though earthquakes are rare in Germany and tend to be weak, Merkel said effects of the Japan earthquake made clear that the measures taken there to protect nuclear plants were insufficient - justifying a review of precautions.
"This has shown that the designs of the nuclear plants were not sufficient against the forces of nature," she said.
Merkel said she has spoken with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, agreeing to discuss nuclear safety at the G-20 summit in France at the end of the month.
Separately from the EU stress test initiative, France ordered safety checks of its 58 nuclear plants to determine their capacity to resist earthquakes or floods.
Energy ministers, nuclear regulators and industry officials meeting in Brussels found "general agreement" on the need for such tests to check whether the European Union's 143 nuclear plants could withstand earthquakes and other emergencies, EU Energy Commissioner Guenter Oettinger said.
Oettinger said the tests should follow "strict standards" that would be set by the second half of the year. He invited non-EU nations, including Russia and Switzerland, to join the initiative.
Earlier yesterday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that seven reactors that went into operation before 1980 would be offline for three months while Europe's biggest economy reconsiders its plans to extend the life of its atomic power plants. One, the Neckarwestheim I reactor, will be shut down permanently.
A previous government decided a decade ago to shut all 17 German nuclear reactors by 2021, but Merkel's administration last year moved to extend their lives by an average of 12 years. That decision was suspended for three months on Monday. Merkel noted that not all are currently on the grid, because of maintenance work.
Though earthquakes are rare in Germany and tend to be weak, Merkel said effects of the Japan earthquake made clear that the measures taken there to protect nuclear plants were insufficient - justifying a review of precautions.
"This has shown that the designs of the nuclear plants were not sufficient against the forces of nature," she said.
Merkel said she has spoken with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, agreeing to discuss nuclear safety at the G-20 summit in France at the end of the month.
Separately from the EU stress test initiative, France ordered safety checks of its 58 nuclear plants to determine their capacity to resist earthquakes or floods.
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