The last three nuclear power plants in Germany will go offline in a few hours.
But is the energy production still sufficient or is there a risk of a blackout?
The countdown to shutting down Germany's nuclear power plants is on.
Three remaining sites, including the Neckarwestheim II nuclear power plant, are still online but will be shut down on April 15, 2023.
That means it's over on Saturday.
But with the end of the nuclear power plant, the concerns of many people in Germany are increasing.
Is there enough electricity or is there a risk of a blackout?
A blackout, i.e. an uncontrolled, widespread power failure lasting days, has been considered the worst scenario for several months.
But at least there are emergency lists in case of a blackout.
But how likely is that and what about the power supply after the nuclear power plant shutdown on Saturday?
The issue of Neckarwestheim has not been completely resolved anyway, because dismantling will probably take up to 15 years.
Akw shutdown at the weekend: how secure is the power supply in Germany?
When it comes to power supply, energy giant EnBW refer to the Federal Network Agency.
Baden-Württemberg's power grid operator Transnet BW explains to
echo24.de
: "The power supply in Germany is secure." The company cites the continuously increasing "addition of renewable energies" as the reason and refers to the "AG Energy Balance", according to which the proportion of renewables Energies in the gross power generation was still 44 percent last year.
Nuclear energy was only involved with six percent.
The Federal Network Agency also responded to an echo24.de inquiry and initially described: “The energy supply in Germany is well positioned.
There is sufficient generation capacity available in the short and medium term.” But there is also “a need to catch up in terms of renewable generation” and also for the grids, which need to be expanded.
So there is no danger of a blackout as soon as the nuclear power plants are shut down on Saturday?
Blackout after nuclear shutdown?
That's what network operators say Transnet BW
A very clear no comes from network operator Transnet BW, who write: "With the shutdown of the three remaining nuclear power plants, there is no risk of a blackout in Germany." The reason given by the company to echo24.de was, among other things, the network operator's long preparations for the shutdown of the power plant shutdown.
A blackout is "almost impossible".
I guess that means that while there is a minimal chance, it is so unlikely that you don't need to worry.
Transnet BW also refers to the StromGedacht app, which the public can use to find out about the “safe and stable operation of our power grid”.
The app caused a stir at the beginning of the year when there was an alarm about an energy bottleneck in Baden-Württemberg, which was mastered.
EnBW and the Federal Network Agency comment on a possible blackout when nuclear power is switched off
EnBW does not want to comment on the risk of a blackout in general, but refers to its own "responsibility for the electricity and heat supply to our customers", which is the company's top priority.
The Karlsruhe energy giant also writes that massive investments are being made in renewable energies and that "the expansion of more climate-friendly available services" is progressing.
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In Neckarwestheim, Baden-Württemberg, there is still a nuclear power plant that will be shut down on Saturday.
© Marijan Murat / dpa
The Federal Network Agency also sees a blackout as very unlikely.
“The risk of a blackout does not increase.
A large-scale blackout is extremely unlikely," was the response to the
echo24.de
query and continued: "Sufficient secured power plant capacity is available from other plants to cover the electricity demand after the nuclear power plants have been shut down and to ensure secure network operation."
Energy supply secured, even without nuclear power - blackout unlikely
The shutdown of the nuclear power plants on Saturday was actually planned for years, but has again caused heated discussions, especially in the past few months.
Extended operation of the power plants over a longer period of time was also thrown into the room.
Now, on April 15, 2023, the time has come: The nuclear power plants in Neckarwestheim, Emsland and Isar will go offline!
Without a blackout if the big companies involved in the energy supply have their way.
"The electrical energy supply system is designed with multiple redundancies and has numerous safety mechanisms that are intended to prevent a complete collapse of the transmission network even in the event of major disruptions," says the Federal Network Agency, also allaying the concerns of the population.
List of rubrics: © Jessica Lichetzki/dpa
