The Local Germany

Germany's nuclear shutdown was a mistake, says Greta Thunberg

Tue, 11 Oct 2022 19:23:17 +0200

Climate activist Greta Thunberg on Tuesday said it was a "mistake" for Germany to shut down existing nuclear power plants while ramping up coal usage to tackle an energy crisis.

Inspectors faked safety checks at two nuclear plants

Fri, 15 Apr 2016 13:03:47 +0200

Workers at two nuclear power plants in western Germany submitted fake reports of their checks on radiation meters, it emerged this week.

German scientists make big stride towards fusion

Fri, 11 Dec 2015 13:15:58 +0100

Scientists in Germany said Thursday they had reached a milestone in a quest to derive energy from nuclear fusion, billed as a potentially limitless, safe and cheap source.

Nuclear energy firms can sue over shutdown

Wed, 15 Jan 2014 12:02:00 +0100

Nuclear power companies came a step closer on Tuesday to suing German states for shutting down many of their power stations after the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan.

EU 'could revoke' green German energy rules

Sun, 14 Jul 2013 21:28:00 +0200

Germany could face a probe into whether it has breached EU competition rules by letting consumers partly foot the bill as it switches to renewable energy, Der Spiegel reported on Sunday.

Electricity exports up despite warnings

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:25:00 +0200

German electricity exports rose again last year, quashing concerns that the country's nuclear phase-out would lead to shortages. New figures show a four-fold increase in export surplus since 2011.

Few follow German no nukes policy

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 13:21:00 +0100

Two years after the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe, nuclear energy usage is growing – except in Germany and in Japan, where the meltdown took place, a story on Saturday in Die Welt said.

Nuclear power will 'never return' to Germany

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 12:00:00 +0100

German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier said on Friday his country would never return to nuclear energy, hitting back at a top EU official who doubted Berlin's commitment to phase out nuclear power.

Electricity bills to increase by €60 a year

Mon, 15 Oct 2012 13:53:00 +0200

Germany's transition to renewable energy is likely to cost a three-person household €60 a year as the so-called EEG reallocation charge will rise from 3.6 euro cents to 5.3 cents per kWh in 2013, it emerged Monday.

Merkel: I didn't cut corners on nuke waste

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 14:30:00 +0200

Chancellor Angela Merkel has denied neglecting safety concerns during her involvement with the controversial nuclear waste storage site at Gorleben.

British nuclear fuel rods arrive from Sellafield

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 18:31:00 +0200

British nuclear fuel rods arrived on Germany's North Sea coast for the first time since the 1980s on Sunday. The ship delivering them attracted some protesters on land and sea, but the journey was generally peaceful.

Minister blocks energy plan, coalition fuming

Wed, 22 Aug 2012 14:25:00 +0200

Consumer Minister Ilse Aigner has annoyed the rest of the cabinet by blocking the plans to make consumers help pay compensation to energy companies for lost income from wind park delays.

Expanding electric grid to cost €20 billion

Tue, 29 May 2012 18:34:00 +0200

Expanding Germany's electricity grid to cope with the country's planned exit from nuclear power will cost about €20 billion over the next decade, a network operator warned on Tuesday.

German hits nuke power station with smoke bomb

Wed, 02 May 2012 19:19:00 +0200

A German man was in French police custody on Wednesday, after dropping a smoke bomb onto a nuclear power station near Lyon from his paraglider as part of a Greenpeace initiative to show up security gaps.

Merkel defends nuclear phase out

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 13:06:00 +0100

German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended her country's decision to phase out nuclear power on Saturday, speaking on the eve of the first anniversary of Japan's Fukushima disaster. But Germany has its work cut out if it is to reach ambitious national targets.

Nuke shutdown costs energy giant €1 billion

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 10:40:00 +0100

RWE, Germany's second biggest-power supplier, said Tuesday earnings last year were hit by a one-billion-euro ($1.3-billion) charge related to the shutdown of some of its nuclear power plants.

Gorleben protests reawake as nuclear lobby work revealed

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:19:00 +0100

As around 6,000 people protested around Germany against a shipment of nuclear waste due to go to the Gorleben storage site next month, a newspaper published a dossier documenting the nuclear industry’s lobbying work.

Anger at Polish plans for nuke plants near Berlin

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 12:08:00 +0200

Authorities in the north east of Germany are preparing for uproar at Polish plans to build a nuclear power station near the border.

Nuclear shutdown slowing economy

Sat, 20 Aug 2011 14:02:00 +0200

The Munich-based Institute for Economic Research (IFO) said on Saturday that the decision to close Germany's nuclear reactors was one of the reasons why the economy's growth was down in the second quarter of the year.

Germany may import Austrian energy in winter

Sat, 13 Aug 2011 10:12:00 +0200

Germany is considering buying electricity from Austria, fearing it will run low on power this winter due to plans to shut down eight nuclear plants, an Austrian daily reported on Friday.