Nuclear Power Plants: Europe Shuts Down 37 Nuclear Power Plants For Good Since Fukushima - Shutdown Trend Continues
Münster, Germany - Following the nuclear accident in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011, 37 nuclear power plants (NPPs) in Europe have now been permanently taken off the grid. This trend of decommissioning nuclear power plants will continue until 2030 and cannot even be remotely offset by new builds.
Europe is losing more and more nuclear power plants since Fukushima - Great Britain in first place
In the European Union, the UK and Switzerland, a total of 37 nuclear power plants were permanently shut down between 2011 and 2024. According to the current planning status in the countries concerned, this figure will rise to 52 nuclear power plants with a total capacity of 43,000 MW by the end of 2030.
The country ranking of nuclear power plant decommissioning in Europe between 2011 and the end of 2030 shows that the UK is in the lead with 18 decommissioned nuclear power plants, followed by Germany (17), Spain (5), Belgium (5), Sweden (4), France (2) and Switzerland (1).
Nuclear power plant expansion: only a maximum of six new nuclear power plants in 20 years
In the same period 2011 - 2030, i.e. within 20 years, a maximum of six new nuclear power plants will go into operation. These include the nuclear power plants Olkiluoto 3 (Finland), Mochovce 3 (Slovakia) and Flamanville 3 (France), which are already in operation, as well as the British nuclear power plant units Hinkley Point C1 and C2, which are still under construction, and the small nuclear power plant Mochovce 4 (Slovakia).
This means that by the end of 2030, Europe will have a net total of 46 nuclear power plants with a capacity of around 35,700 MW less available for electricity production than in 2011, the year of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
„The idea of a rapid renaissance of nuclear energy in Europe is unrealistic. Instead, the decline in nuclear power capacity in Europe will become increasingly noticeable in the future. Without a further rapid and massive expansion of renewable energies, the steadily growing nuclear gap in Europe cannot be closed in the near future," says Dr. Norbert Allnoch, head of IWR.
Outdated European nuclear fleet and sluggish new construction
According to the IWR, the main reason for the decline in nuclear power plant capacity is the significant ageing of the current nuclear power plant fleet and the slow pace of new nuclear power plant construction. By the end of 2024, a total of 59 of the 114 nuclear power plants in Europe with a capacity of 50,000 MW will already be 40 years or older and therefore well beyond their originally planned operating life of 30 years.
Due to the increasing age of nuclear power plants, further decommissioning is to be expected after 2030, while planned new builds will be dependent on state aid due to the very high construction and financing risks and will continue to make only slow progress. Even in the currently unlikely event of a rapid start to the construction of new nuclear power plants, it is unlikely that they will go into operation and be available to supply electricity before 2040 due to the long construction times of 10 to 15 years per nuclear power plant.
Why mini-nuclear power plants are not a solution in the short term
Small nuclear power plants or SMRs (Small Modular Reactors) are often cited by the nuclear industry as an alternative to the construction of large nuclear power plants (1,600 MW). However, these mini-nuclear power plants are anything but small; the nuclear power plant capacity ranges up to 500 MW per nuclear power plant and thus corresponds to the capacity of the Belgian nuclear power plant Doel 1, which will be shut down in February 2025, for example.
However, companies are still a long way from actually realising such mini nuclear power plants. In fact, in Western countries there are at best technical design drafts, no licences and not a single presentable prototype that could show that the technology actually works.
The very high costs of small nuclear power plants also represent a major obstacle to realisation. For example, the construction of six mini-nuclear power plants in the USA, each with 77 MW (462 MW total capacity), would cost a total of at least 9.3 billion dollars (8.9 billion euros). In contrast, a comparable 500 MW gas-fired power plant would only cost around 500 million euros. As a result, Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) cancelled the contract with SMR developer NuScale and terminated the project.
Source: IWR Online, 24 Feb 2025
