Life extension of nuclear reactors cheaper than expected
The compensation bill for keeping Belgium's two remaining nuclear reactors open longer will be much lower than originally expected, De Tijd reports on Friday. French energy company Engie had asked for almost 600 million euros, but will have to settle for 154 million.
Engie, Electrabel - part of the Engie group and operator of the reactors - and the Belgian government had agreed that Electrabel would receive compensation for negative synergy effects, because it can no longer decommission the seven reactors optimally, now that two of them have to run for another 10 years.
A few weeks ago, an invoice surfaced related to the complex deal the federal government had made with Engie to extend the life of Doel 4 and Tihange 3. Electrabel asked the government for 580 million euros for the extra decommissioning costs, and had included an estimate of the costs in its recently published annual accounts.
But Energy minister Tinne Van der Straeten disagreed with this calculation and asked the Nuclear Utilities Commission to recalculate the costs. That commission has now decided that the amount requested by Electrabel is too high and has proposed a total of 154 million euros instead.
Waiting for European Commission
Both Van der Straeten and the energy company say they accept the recalculated amount and will not appeal, saving Belgium more than 400 million euros. According to the agreements, the compensation will be paid by the state to Electrabel when the nuclear deal is concluded, which could happen as soon as this year.
The timing depends mainly on when the European Commission decides to give the go-ahead. The Commission announced on Monday that it would launch an in-depth investigation into the deal to see if measures such as the compensation bill violate European state aid rules.
© BELGA PHOTO KRISTOF VAN ACCOM
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