Belgium abandons nuclear exit plans

The Chamber of Representatives has voted by a large majority to repeal a 2003 law setting out plans to phase out nuclear power.

The bill to repeal the nuclear exit law was proposed by the majority parties and received support from opposition parties Vlaams Belang and Open VLD. The PS and PVDA-PTB abstained, while Ecolo-Groen voted against it.

The 2003 law set a date for the closure of Belgium's seven nuclear power plants and prohibited the construction of new nuclear capacity. Over the past two decades, the law has been amended several times to allow a number of nuclear power plants to remain open for longer.

Commitment to nuclear

Two of the current majority parties, MR and N-VA, have long been set on repealing the law entirely. With the green parties no longer in government, a compromise on the issue was swiftly reached.

The current federal government's coalition agreement shows a much stronger commitment to nuclear energy than Belgium has demonstrated in the past, albeit not exclusively.

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belganewsagency.eu

Repealing the law does not mean the government can immediately start building new nuclear power stations. The closure dates of existing power stations are being revised, and the government must now produce a roadmap.

Turning point

The vote marked "a turning point in Belgian energy history", according to Energy minister Mathieu Bihet of MR. "By approving the law that paves the way for the return of nuclear energy to our country by a large majority, the federal parliament is moving beyond two decades of deadlock and hesitation and embracing a realistic and resilient energy model," he said.

"With this new law, Belgium is finally equipping itself to guarantee an energy mix based on today's reality. It is no longer a question of pitting energy sources against each other in a binary and sterile way, but of using them pragmatically and complementarily.”

^{The Doel nuclear power plant in Doel, Belgium © BELGA PHOTO DIRK WAEM}