Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Switzerland to use nuclear energy longer than expected

Swiss nuclear power plant
Some Swiss nuclear power plants have a life span that could keep them running until 2040. Keystone

Switzerland plans keeping nuclear plants in use longer than previously expected over fears of electricity shortages, mirroring a broader trend of European countries revisiting the potential of atomic energy.

The country decided to exit nuclear power in 2017, but didn’t set a date to shut down its four plants, which are supposed to run as long as deemed safe. Operators Axpo Holding AG and Alpiq Holding AG have already boosted the planned lifespan for their plants to 60 years from a previous target of 50, spokespeople for the companies told Bloomberg. That would see them operating until around 2040.

On top of that, Alpiq is studying the impacts of a further extension to as many as 80 years on safety, investments and profitability, its spokesman said. That would mirror moves in the US, where more than 90% of existing nuclear reactors will likely seek approval to operate at least that long.

Swiss nuclear power plants are allowed run for as long as they can be operated safely, a spokesperson for Switzerland’s Federal Office of Energy said, highlighting that the government never set an exit date and all lifespan calculations stem from reactor operators. 

According to a survey of those companies, extending power plants’ lifetimes beyond 60 years is economically feasible without financial support from the government, the spokesperson added.

Countries across Europe are also looking to allow nuclear plants to run for longer. France, Belgium and Finland are working on extensions for their reactor fleets similar to Switzerland’s, as they anticipate growing electricity demand and don’t want to rely solely on renewable energies. 

The same is the case with Romania, Bulgaria and Slovenia, which have plans to build new plants. Germany, on the contrary, shut down its last plants in April after political wrangling over the decision shook Europe’s largest economy for more than two decades.

©2023 Bloomberg L.P.

This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. You can find them here

If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.

External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Daily news

Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox.

Daily

The SBC Privacy Policy provides additional information on how your data is processed.


Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

More than 1,100 Swiss cheeses on show in Lugano

More

Swiss Cheese Awards winners announced

This content was published on The three best Swiss cheeses were chosen on Friday in Lugano from over 1100 products submitted to an international jury.

Read more: Swiss Cheese Awards winners announced
Switzerland delivers equipment worth 5.6 million to Ukraine

More

Switzerland will deliver rubble removal equipment to Ukraine

This content was published on Thirty rubble removal machines and thirty fire-fighting pumps: this is the equipment that Switzerland will be delivering to the Ukraine in the next few days. The total value of these goods is 5.6 million Swiss francs.

Read more: Switzerland will deliver rubble removal equipment to Ukraine
Trees can live for thousands of years

More

Swiss-led study unravels tree growth and longevity

This content was published on Trees reach old age using different strategies. This is shown by a Swiss-led research team with over 100 scientists from all over the world in a new study, for which they analyzed trees that live to be over three thousand years old.

Read more: Swiss-led study unravels tree growth and longevity

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR