Belgian nuclear plans stay the same
Plans to extend the lives of Belgium's nuclear power plants, a topic much discussed in the run-up to the inauguration of the country's new government, have not been included in the government's platform and are not likely to be revisited until election time comes round again.
Plans to extend the lives of Belgium's nuclear power plants, a topic much discussed in the run-up to the inauguration of the country's new government, have not been included in the government's platform and are not likely to be revisited until election time comes round again.
It took over 9 months from the general election in June 2007 to the inauguration of the coalition government, led by new Prime Minister Yves Leterme. The topic of life extension of the country's seven operating nuclear reactors, and the country's formal plans to phase out nuclear power starting from 2014, were widely discussed during the negotiations leading to the formation of the new government. However, no mention of possible plant life extensions was included in the government's official "declaration", meaning that the law stands unchanged.
Nuclear provides over half the country's electricity, and a 2007 government study on energy policy concluded that Belgium should use nuclear power in the long term in order to meet CO2 reduction commitments, enhance energy security and maintain economic stability. It also found that the 2003 phase-out law, which prohibits the construction of new nuclear power plants and limits the lives of the existing ones, would make CO2 reduction targets prohibitively expensive and should be reconsidered. Under the 2003 law, the first of the currently operating units would be due to close in 2014.
According to Jeroen Janssens, a spokesman for the new climate change and energy minister Paul Magnette cited in Nucleonics Week, the government has decided to create another expert panel to examine Belgian energy options, due to report back by the end of 2009. However, an unnamed Belgian nuclear industry official told the publication that the phase-out issue is not likely to be re-opened by the current government no matter what the conclusions of the new report.
Belgium is Dutch-speaking in the northern region of Flanders and French-speaking in the south, with separate political parties for the main ideologies existing in each half of the country. The next round of Belgian elections is due to take place in 2011, but commentators suggest that the country's volatile political situation, with the Flemish parties seeking greater autonomy and constitutional reform, could precipitate elections as early as 2009.
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