Germany faces energy conundrum as it shuts last three nuclear power stations

Germany's three remaining nuclear power stations will shut down today, 12 years after the Fukushima disaster in Japan accelerated the country's exit from atomic energy.

- Alex Lawson

The closures mark the conclusion of a stop-start approach to atomic energy and a victory for the country's vociferous anti-nuclear movement.

The facilities that are shutting are in Emsland, in the northern state of Lower Saxony, the Isar 2 site in Bavaria, and Neckarwestheim, in Baden-Württemberg in the south-west.

The shutdowns leave a conundrum for energy policymakers attempting to balance growing electricity demand in one of Europe's industrial superpowers and efforts to decarbonise against the backdrop of uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine.

Germany last year delayed the closure of the three sites - which provided about 6.5% of the country's electricity in 2022-after Russia reduced European gas supplies, triggering concerns about a shortage of energy over the winter.

The country began phasing out nuclear power more than 20 years ago following a long-fought campaign against the technology, but, in 2010, Angela Merkel, then the chancellor, announced an extension to the life of the country's 17 nuclear plants until 2036 at the latest.