“I have the personal conviction that reality is going to prevail and it will be necessary to extend the period of use of the Spanish nuclear power plants if the stability of the electrical system is to be guaranteed.” The president of the Nuclear Forum, Ignacio Araluce, has shown himself to be confident about the future of nuclear plants in Spain, although as he himself acknowledged this Tuesday in a meeting with the press, “there is no signal from the Government for this.” ”.
Specifically, Araluce has criticized the third vice president and minister for the Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, for not even wanting to sit down with the sector to analyze the situation facing the electrical system in Spain.
In his opinion, the environment has changed a lot in relation to what occurred in 2019 when the main owners of nuclear power plants in Spain agreed with the Government on a calendar for their staggered closure that will have its first milestone at the end of 2024, when The closure process of Almaraz I must be launched, which is planned to be dismantled first, specifically in 2027. “A calendar that must be reconsidered”
After the energy crisis and the strong push for renewables, the electrical system not only needs to multiply wind energy by four and even more photovoltaic energy to compensate for nuclear production. To this increase in installed power we must add strong investments in updating the electrical network and in the development of batteries. “While all this is taking place, how do you intend to carry out the decarbonization objectives? Replacing nuclear with gas combined cycles?” Araluce asks ironically.
The data managed by Foro Nuclear, based on those managed by REE, nuclear power plants generated 54,275 GWh in Spain, 20.34% of the total net electricity production, despite the fact that the installed power was only 5.71%. of the total. This reflects its efficiency to “provide stability, robustness and give firm power to the system and avoids the emission of 20 million tons of CO2,” Araluce insists.
This claim by the sector had begun at the beginning of the outbreak of the energy crisis in 2021, but has now become more acute when the Government has announced, without consulting the sector, the implementation of a new tax of 3.14 euros per kilowatt produced.
The objective of this tax is to offset the cost involved in the decision to delay the construction of a single nuclear cemetery until 2073 and to move forward until then with temporary nuclear cemeteries. “We have not been consulted at any time. Not for that or for anything. They unilaterally decide that they change the law and that we pay for that change. ”warns Araluce.
Drawing on data, Foro Nuclear points out that it is more profitable for nuclear plants to remain open and continue contributing the 450 million euros annually that they pay to the public company Enresa, to cover the expense of managing nuclear waste. “The longer we are operating, the more we will pay and the less hole there will be in the Enresa Fund to finance the closure of plants and waste management,” Araluce assured.
