Survey Indicates Nearly Half Of Germans Favour Longer N-Plant Operations

10 Mar (NucNet): A new survey indicates that nearly half of the German population supports extending operations of the country's nuclear power plants, the German Atomic Forum (DAtF) said today.

The DAtF said the representative survey was conducted by German market and public opinion research company TNS Emnid. The survey indicates that 49 percent of Germans support extending the remaining running times of the country's units beyond 2021, compared to 44 percent against and 7 percent who were undecided or did not know.

The DAtF said the results of the survey showed the climate of opinion was turning in favour of longer use of nuclear energy while "ideological" objections to nuclear were wavering.

If Germany really intends to combat climate change and guarantee a competitive and reliable power supply, the use of nuclear energy cannot be avoided, the DatF said.

Legislation which came into force in Germany in 2002 limits operating lifetimes of German reactor units to about 32 years. The legislation was aimed at ensuring an "orderly end" to the use of nuclear power in Germany.
 
In January 2007, a Deutsche Bank study said that extending the lifetime of all nuclear-power plants in Germany to 60 years would mean 19 gigawatts of nuclear generating capacity that would otherwise have to be replaced by 2020 would still be available.

"Given the technical feasibility of extending the operating lives of Germany's nuclear stations, the main obstacle is political," the study said.

For further information, please read the press release of the Deutsches Atomforum (DATF).