Germany to Shut Down Last Nuclear Power Plants

On Saturday, Germany is set to shut down its last three nuclear reactors at the end of a process of abandoning atomic energy that began long ago, despite the controversy that this decision raises in the context of the urgent climate crisis.

It was decided to close the smoke towers in the Essar 2, Emsland and Neckarwestheim 2 reactors forever by midnight, as part of Berlin's implementation of its plan to limit electricity generation to renewable sources by 2035.

Europe's largest economy opens a new chapter in the energy field after facing the challenge of ending dependence on fossil fuels while managing the gas crisis caused by the war in Ukraine.

The German government had given these plants a few weeks' notice after their cessation date, which was set on December 31, but without going back on the decision to turn the page on nuclear energy.

After years of prevarication, Germany pledged to abandon nuclear power once and for all after the Fukushima disaster in Japan in 2011, which led to radioactive contamination and caused panic in the world.

However, the final steps to shut down were postponed last summer to this year after Germany halted fossil fuel imports from Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.

Prices increased and fears of energy shortages spread around the world, but Germany is now reassuring about gas supplies and expanding renewable energy sources.