In 2021, the Grohnde nuclear power plant in Lower Saxony on the Weser River was shut down. Now, immediately next to it, the Emmerthal energy cluster is growing with three very large battery storage systems, ground-mounted photovoltaic systems, and a new substation for several 380-kilovolt high-voltage lines.

  • poVoq@slrpnk.netM
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    3 days ago

    The French highly subsidize their nuclear power. It is not cheap at all and according to the French president, it only makes sense because they are a vital component of their nuclear arms industry.

    • IncogCyberSpaceUser@piefed.social
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      3 days ago

      Thank you for responding.
      Can you provide a source for both of those claims? What I’m seeing is that it’s profitable on its own, and generation isnt behind subsidized.

      • poVoq@slrpnk.netM
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        3 days ago

        The construction is state funded, and the majority state owned operator has high debts because it isn’t actually profitable on its own, and those debts are ultimatly underwritten by the state so another form of subsidy.

        And that doesn’t even account for insurance costs which because it is owned by the French state are not done at all or not realistically priced. And decomissioning costs and nuclear waste disposal costs are also not priced in.

        The French state pays a lot to keep up the false public opinion that everyone benefits from the cheap nuclear power, when in reality it is a heavy burden on their state budget and only done for national security reasons (and sunk cost fallacies).