German govt to keep nuke power plant open longer
Date: 16-Oct-02
Country: GERMANY
Obrigheim, Germany's oldest nuclear power station, was due to be decommissioned under the country's nuclear phase-out law next January, but Energie Baden Wuerttemberg (EnBW) had applied to extend the life of the plant.
Under the law, each of Germany's nuclear plants was allowed to produce a fixed amount of energy. Trittin said Obrigheim's extension would be matched by a reduction in the lifetime of the Philippsburg I reactor, also owned by EnBW.
"The sum of nuclear power (to be produced) will remain the same," Trittin told a news conference, putting a brave face on a decision criticised by environmentalist groups who make up the Greens party's political bedrock.
Greens party officials said the decision could be contested at a special party congress on Friday and Saturday, called to approve a new coalition government programme with Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrats.
The coalition agreement is due to be signed on Wednesday.
