22 years of hesitation around the closure of Belgian nuclear power plants
Seven reactors, almost half of the country’s electricity supply
First, let’s set the scene. The fleet of Belgian nuclear power plants consists of seven reactors. They were put into service between 1975 and 1985.
In 1975, on the edge of the port of Antwerp, the Doel site hosted its first reactors, Doel 1 and Doel 2.
Doel 3 followed in 1982. Tihange 2 produced its first Megawats in 1983. Finally in 1985, Doel 4 and Tihange 3 completed the fleet of Belgian nuclear power plants.
In total, Doel’s four reactors will produce 3,016 megawatts. The three reactors at Tihange provide 2,911 MW, according to figures communicated by the Nuclear Forum. The seven reactors are able to supply roughly 50% of the country’s electricity needs.
2003: the government agrees to close the power plants in 2015
In January 2003, while Belgium was ruled by Guy Verhofstadt’s “Arc-en-ciel” government, in the figure the Ecolos obtained, Parliament voted the “Law on the gradual phase-out of nuclear energy at industrial production of electricity “. In other words, Belgium decides to close its nuclear power plants. Electricity will have to be produced by other means.
The closure is scheduled for 2015 for the three oldest reactors, Doel 1, Doel 2 and Tihange 2. The other four reactors are due to close between 2022 and 2025.
The nuclear phase-out law voted, the debate on the extension of the reactors is relaunched
The years which follow the vote of this law on the closing of nuclear reactors are peppered with debates. As of June 2003, the Ecologists are no longer in the federal government. The various parties in power regularly discuss stopping nuclear power. Should the reactors be closed as planned? Shouldn’t we extend it? Questions around the country’s energy supply provide food for thought.
Finally, in 2009, the government of Herman Van Rompuy (CD&V) decided to extend the operating life of certain reactors. The three oldest reactors, Doel 1, Doel 2 and Tihange 1, can operate for 50 years. They who must stop in 2015 being able to run until 2025. However, it will not be until June 2015, in extremis, that the Parliament will approve, by a vote, this decision.
2012-2015: incidents, microcracks. Doubts about reactor safety
In 2012, questions about the safety of nuclear reactors came to the fore in the debate on the future of these means of producing electricity. During the summer of 2012, indications of faults were discovered on the Doel 3 reactor vessel. In the aftermath, in September 2012, the Tihange 2 reactor vessel gave rise to the same concerns.
It was not until spring, in May 2013, that the supervisory authority, the FANC, authorized the restart of Doel 3 and Tihange 2.
In August 2014, sabotage led to the shutdown of the Doel 4 reactor. A valve in the drain line of the oil tank was opened intentionally according to the investigation. To date, the person responsible for this act has not been identified.
In March 2014, new investigations began on the vessels of the Doel 3 and Tihange 2 reactors. The discovery of “microcracks” in the vessels led to the shutdown of the two reactors. The supervisory authority, the FANC, will not authorize the resumption of the activities of Doel 3 and Tihange 2 until November 2015.
From 2018, the closure of reactors between 2022 and 2025 becomes clearer
In March 2018, the federal government (Michel I government) agreed to close the Belgian nuclear fleet between 2022 and 2025. However, it fixes the beacons. The implementation of the nuclear phase-out strategy must meet four criteria: security of energy supply, compliance with the Paris climate agreements, maintaining an affordable price for households and businesses and, and finally, the security of the installations.
In September 2020, the current government reconfirms the decision to phase out nuclear power. Energy Minister Tine Vanderstraeten (Gren) is responsible for the security of the country’s energy supply in the event of the closure of nuclear power plants. What consequences will the closure of the power plants have on the electricity supply? A framework must be put in place to allow the development of alternative energy sources. It is also necessary to develop a “capacity remuneration mechanism” (CRM), a system of subsidies to encourage investors to build, among other things, gas-fired power plants that will support renewable energies and provide the electricity needed after nuclear reactors shut down. It is also necessary to calculate the consequences of the closure of nuclear reactors on the price of electricity.