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Formateur Bart De Wever (N-VA) is not letting grass grow over one thing: keeping the nuclear power plants open longer. By quickly requesting that Doel 4 and Tihange 3 stay open longer, he hopes to get ahead of owner Engie.

In the news: De Wever informs Engie that he wants to "put maximum effort" into nuclear energy.

  • A forewarned company is worth two, the reasoning seems to be. The Vivaldi government was finally able to clinch that Engie will keep the Doel 4 and Tihange 3 plants open longer. Those plants would continue to run until 2035.
  • But De Wever wants to keep both open longer than the agreed ten years, writes The Time. He is making his intention known now because French Engie has claimed many times in the past that it is "unrealistic" to keep the old reactors operating longer. Engie can thus anticipate more maintenance periods.
  • De Wever does not want to wait until there is a deal in the coalition agreement. And he doesn't necessarily have to, because the five parties negotiating the Arizona coalition agree on extending the plants. That emerged from talks with the nuclear watchdog FANC last week.
  • De Wever wants an additional extension "anyway" if he becomes prime minister, he has indicated. In principle, agreements on this are concluded in 10-year blocks. Doel 4 and Tihange 3 would thus remain operational until at least 2045, is the idea.
  • The only question is whether Engie will agree to that. The Belgian state does own half of the nuclear power plants, but it won't be easy. Engie already demanded a guaranteed power price, presumably 81 euros per megawatt hour. There was also a strict arrangement about nuclear waste management: the deal capped the costs for which Engie itself will pay at 15 billion euros.
    • One solution is for the Belgian government to look for another partner to operate the nuclear plants. But even that is no easy task.

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