Released August 10, 2012 | GALWAY, IRELAND
en
Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- One of the German energy companies affected by the government's surprise decision to ditch nuclear power has said that it will not be taking legal action.
Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW) (Karlsruhe, Germany) claimed that although it agrees with the opinions and legal action being undertaken by other affected nuclear operators against the government, it said that its unusual ownership structure would prevent it taking similar action. Germany's sudden decision last year to stop using nuclear power will see all of the country's 17 reactors being shut down over the coming decade. For additional information, see May 30, 2011, article - Germany Votes to Dump Nuclear Power.
Germany's four main nuclear plant operators, EnBW, E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf, Germany), RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany) and Vattenfall have seen their profits plummet as a result over the past year. E.ON and RWE have vowed to fight the decision in the courts and are seeking billions of euro in compensation. For additional information, see June 15, 2012, article - E.ON Seeks 8 Billion from German Government.
EnBW is almost completely publicly-owned and said: "following intensive legal consultation, the company has been advised that due to its ownership structure it may lack the right to file such a complaint."
"We are feeling the financial effects of the move as much as E.ON, RWE and Vattenfall are," it continued. "EnBW explicitly shares the legal opinion of E.ON, RWE and Vattenfall, according to which, the 13th amendment of the Atomic Energy Act is unlikely to withstand a constitutional examination. We are therefore confident that, if the complaints are successful, the constitutional court will also take EnBW's interests into account when it makes its ruling."
The company has instead decided on a fast tear-down of its nuclear plants at Neckarwestheim (GKN) and Philippsburg (KKP). Blocks GKN I and KKP 1 were switched off last year and are in, what the company called, a post-processing stage where the decommissioning work will be planned. Blocks GKN II and KKP 2 will continue generating electricity until the year 2022 and 2019, respectively.
"Our facilities, including the ones that have been shut down, are still subject to the Atomic Energy Act," said Jörg Michels, Chairman of EnBW Kernkraft, whioch oversees the nuclear plants. "You can't simply shut them down and dismantle them", emphasises Jörg Michels. The corresponding approvals from the atomic approval authority, the Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Energy Management in Baden-Württemberg, are required for the individual shutdown and dismantling stages."
He added: "We are taking note of our responsibility and not putting the issue of decommissioning work off any longer. With direct decommissioning, we are achieving clarity for the public, employees and our business partners. Both safety-related and economical aspects support immediate decommissioning in our view."
View Plant Profile - 1077978 1077975
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW) (Karlsruhe, Germany) claimed that although it agrees with the opinions and legal action being undertaken by other affected nuclear operators against the government, it said that its unusual ownership structure would prevent it taking similar action. Germany's sudden decision last year to stop using nuclear power will see all of the country's 17 reactors being shut down over the coming decade. For additional information, see May 30, 2011, article - Germany Votes to Dump Nuclear Power.
Germany's four main nuclear plant operators, EnBW, E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf, Germany), RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany) and Vattenfall have seen their profits plummet as a result over the past year. E.ON and RWE have vowed to fight the decision in the courts and are seeking billions of euro in compensation. For additional information, see June 15, 2012, article - E.ON Seeks 8 Billion from German Government.
EnBW is almost completely publicly-owned and said: "following intensive legal consultation, the company has been advised that due to its ownership structure it may lack the right to file such a complaint."
"We are feeling the financial effects of the move as much as E.ON, RWE and Vattenfall are," it continued. "EnBW explicitly shares the legal opinion of E.ON, RWE and Vattenfall, according to which, the 13th amendment of the Atomic Energy Act is unlikely to withstand a constitutional examination. We are therefore confident that, if the complaints are successful, the constitutional court will also take EnBW's interests into account when it makes its ruling."
The company has instead decided on a fast tear-down of its nuclear plants at Neckarwestheim (GKN) and Philippsburg (KKP). Blocks GKN I and KKP 1 were switched off last year and are in, what the company called, a post-processing stage where the decommissioning work will be planned. Blocks GKN II and KKP 2 will continue generating electricity until the year 2022 and 2019, respectively.
"Our facilities, including the ones that have been shut down, are still subject to the Atomic Energy Act," said Jörg Michels, Chairman of EnBW Kernkraft, whioch oversees the nuclear plants. "You can't simply shut them down and dismantle them", emphasises Jörg Michels. The corresponding approvals from the atomic approval authority, the Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Energy Management in Baden-Württemberg, are required for the individual shutdown and dismantling stages."
He added: "We are taking note of our responsibility and not putting the issue of decommissioning work off any longer. With direct decommissioning, we are achieving clarity for the public, employees and our business partners. Both safety-related and economical aspects support immediate decommissioning in our view."
View Plant Profile - 1077978 1077975
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
