Actually, the shutdown of the last nuclear power plants is imminent.
But the mood is turning.
More and more experts are calling for an extension of the term.
Berlin - Six nuclear power plants are currently still in operation in Germany.
But that should end by 2022 at the latest.
The legal decision to finally phase out nuclear power has been in place since 2011.
At that time, Chancellor Angela Merkel declared that the risks of nuclear energy were not manageable.
The end of nuclear power in Germany was decided just three months after the devastating catastrophe in Fukushima.
But now doubts are growing as to whether the decision at that time was really the right one.
Nuclear phase-out: rising energy prices and climate protection raise doubts
The three possible governing parties, the SPD, FDP and the Greens, are ruling out a return to nuclear energy.
But the voices in favor of extending the service life of nuclear power plants are getting louder.
To justify this, critics refer to rising energy prices and possible supply bottlenecks.
This can be a dangerous mix.
Jürgen Hambrecht, the former head of the world's largest chemical company, BASF, warns of this in an interview with the
FAZ
: “The simultaneous exit from coal and nuclear power is a mistake.
Proceeding in this way can lead to excessive demands on private households and the economy, endanger Germany's energy security and put a strain on competitiveness. "
Hambrecht also calls for a balance between the dangers of climate change and the dangers of nuclear energy.
In addition, the government assured ten years ago that the energy supply would remain environmentally friendly, safe and affordable even without nuclear power - but with the skyrocketing energy prices, there is currently no talk of affordable.
France and Great Britain are increasingly relying on nuclear energy
With Germany’s neighbors such as France or Great Britain, phasing out nuclear power is not an option at all.
On the contrary: some European countries use nuclear energy as part of their climate strategies.
As the British newspaper
The Telegraph
reports, Britain even wants to build a new nuclear power plant.
When asked by the Reuters news agency, a government spokesman said: "We are trying to approve at least one more large nuclear project in the next few years to strengthen energy security and create thousands of jobs."
Our direct neighbor France also relies on nuclear energy.
Over 70 percent of French electricity comes from nuclear power plants.
Another 15 percent come from renewable energy sources such as water, wind or solar power.
And President Emmanuel Macron wants to expand nuclear power.
He plans to build several mini nuclear power plants.
So while Germany wants to take all of its nuclear power plants off the grid, more and more EU member states are in favor of using nuclear energy as a climate-friendly alternative.
In a call in several European newspapers, numerous ministers from various European countries called for "nuclear energy to be treated like any other low-carbon energy source".
So where nuclear power opponents clap their hands over their heads, climate protectors should be happy.
Because the topic of nuclear energy is far from off the table in Europe.
(ph)