Status: 10/21/2022 12:20 p.m
After the decision to continue operating three nuclear power plants, Isar 2 is going offline for maintenance work. The repair caused heated discussions nationwide. Local support for the nuclear power plant is great.
The Isar 2 nuclear power plant is shut down and off the grid. At least for a week. A few days after the Federal Chancellor’s “word of power” to leave the three active nuclear power plants in Germany connected to the grid after the end of the year, the necessary prerequisites for this are being created in Lower Bavaria. This requires a repair, which has caused heated discussions in recent months.
In the early hours of the morning, almost no steam came out of the Isar 2 cooling tower. A specialist company took over, specifically internal leaks in the pilot control valves in the reactor containment had to be repaired. A repair in the sensitive area of the power plant, which quickly causes nervousness in the public eye, but is described by the operating company as a purely routine intervention.
Power plant manager speaks of “standard measure”
“The overhaul of these valves is a standard measure,” explains power plant manager Carsten Müller ARD interview. “In the usual revision, we overhauled, readjusted and reinstalled these valves every year. That’s nothing unusual at all. The unusual thing is that this topic has now been brought to the public.”
Because in September it will be known that the continued operation of Isar 2 will not be possible without further ado. “Internal leaks” are abbreviated to “leak” in media reports, and once again the question of the safety of the plant is raised.
Dissatisfaction also in Berlin, where Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Bündnis 90/Greens) criticizes not having received any earlier information from Bavaria. There, the power plant operator and Minister for the Environment Thorsten Faithr (free voters) hold against it. No limit values were exceeded, it was not a reportable process. But the problem is that Isar 2 cannot continue without repairs.
Crisis communication nuclear power
The operating company Preussen Elektra is therefore transparent, the exact procedure of the intervention is described in detail on the website of the nuclear power plant. Crisis communication in times when proponents and opponents of nuclear power follow what is happening in the power plants with millimeter precision.
Nevertheless, the transparency of the power plant operators usually ends at the fence to the company premises, but at the latest at the walls of the building. There are no publicly available pictures of the repair. Restraint in the details, despite the routine that is repeatedly emphasized.
Nuclear phase-out as an election campaign topic
Meanwhile, the debate about the nuclear phase-out continues in Bavaria. The running time of the piles has long been a campaign issue. The governing coalition of the CSU and Free Voters can’t do much with the Chancellor’s decision. Both parties have been in favor of buying new fuel elements for months and are demanding continued operation for several years. Opinions differ only on the question of whether 2024 or 2025 should be the end.
To insist on the fixed date for the nuclear phase-out in April is negligent, says Deputy Prime Minister Hubert Aiwanger (free voters) in the ARD interview: “One should at least prepare for the fact that nuclear power will accompany the winter until 2024. Therefore, in my opinion, one should pre-order fuel rods now.” They do not necessarily have to be used, says Aiwanger. In the event that the situation should repeat itself next winter, the country is at least prepared.
Lots of support in the region
Aiwanger himself is from Lower Bavaria, comes from the district of Landshut, where the nuclear power plant is located and has shaped the region for decades. With his demand he is running into open doors here. The nuclear power plant enjoys great support, is regarded as an economic driver and a good employer. Proponents say that electricity has been produced here for around 43 years without any major incidents. A few months or years more doesn’t matter anymore.
One of the critics is the Landshut Greens politician Rosi Steinberger. She has been an opponent of nuclear power from the very beginning and has been fighting for its shutdown for years. The fact that this is now being pushed further back is painful, says the member of parliament. A well-known back-and-forth, which in an emergency could be carried along this one time: “But it is clear that no more new fuel elements can be bought. That is the red line for us. It must not be shaken.”
Operators must create safe operations in the spring
A few days after the decision to leave the Isar 2, Neckarwestheim 2 and Emsland nuclear power plants online until April 15, 2023, the tension is high. Preussen Elektra has repeatedly shown itself willing to talk in the debate about a possible postponement of the nuclear phase-out. Should politicians decide to continue operation, Preussen Elektra will do everything in its power to implement this wish.
It is now up to the operators to create all the prerequisites for safe operation in spring 2023 – in terms of both personnel and technology. In just over a week, the Isar 2 nuclear power plant is to be restarted. Probably for the last time in its history.