To complete the
previous blog:
https://vivrelarecherche.blogspot.com/2019/08/energiewende-nos-chers-amis-allemands.html
And to give a little
insight into the Franco-German atmosphere in energy policy:
About Fessenheim:
12
January 2015, letter from Barbara Hendricks, German Minister of the
Environment, to Ségolène Royal:
"Dear
Colleague, In 2014, on the sidelines of the informal environmental summit in
Milan, we talked among other things about the Fessenheim nuclear power plant. I
therefore welcome the fact that President Hollande has once again confirmed the
decision to close Fessenheim. In this context, and in connection with my letter
of September 15, 2014, please inform me of the timetable and procedures you
intend to follow for the Fessenheim stop.
As
you know, the people living in the border areas are very concerned about the
security of the plant. I urge you to take these concerns into account when
weighing the pros and cons and in your decisions, and to foresee the Fessenheim
shutdown at the nearest possible time. I am of course aware that in this area,
the decision is ultimately France's sovereign responsibility. But you certainly
won't mind me fighting for the demands of the people who live near the
Fessenheim power plant.
Comment: A bit threatening, no!
04/03/2016 , the same Barbara Hendricks: "The French nuclear power plant in Fessenheim,
close to the border with Germany, is "too
old" and "should be closed as soon as possible," a spokesman
for the German minister said on Friday. Barbara Hendricks. "For us it is very clear that Fessenheim
is very old, too old to be still active," the spokesman said, when asked
at a regular government press briefing. "The minister is calling for (the
plant) to be closed as much as possible."
"Obviously, such an older reactor has a lot of technical
problems," he said, and "for us reactors this old pose a security
risk." He referred to "the concerns of the inhabitants of the border
regions ".
Comment: lies and lies! In France, nuclear power plants are
maintained and regularly modernized. If Fessenheim is closed, it is by a purely
political decision, the Nuclear Security Authority having deemed it good for
the service!
Fessenheim
and Cattenom, or when Nicolas Hulot defended French nuclear power and stuck
with the Germans.
"After
a two-year shutdown for control, reactor 2 at the Fessenheim nuclear power
plant in Upper Rhine is due to restart on Saturday 31 March. This is expected
to last only a few months since the government has promised to close the
Alsatian power plant at the end of 2018, when the EPR in Flamanville (Manche)
has started.
This
closure is also an issue for France's European neighbours, such as Germany.
Nicolas Hulot, the Minister of Ecological and Solidarity Transition, met his
German counterpart, Svenja Schulze, this week and for the first time. During
the meeting, the German Minister of Environment, Nature Protection and Nuclear
Safety recalled that her country's demands had not changed on this
issue.
"I have obviously expressed the concerns of the German
people," said Svenja Schulze, "and that is why I really welcome
the fact that we are moving towards a quick stop at the Fessenheim power plant."
"Of
course I also talked about the Cattenom power plant [in Moselle] and our
position that there should be no extra time," said the German
minister. We agreed that the topics we are discussing here are also very
important for the German population at the border.
Nicolas
Hulot's response: the government will close the Fessenheim plant as soon as the
EPR starts, either at the end of 2018 or in 2019. On the other hand, for
Cattenom, he recalled that EDF was starting maintenance work, in order to
continue its production for another 10 years.
The
French Minister of Ecological and Solidarity Transition wanted to give the best
welcome to his newly appointed counterpart, to show that they also had common
ground. "No one has a lesson to teach themselves," said
Nicolas Hulot. Our two countries are in unparalleled energy transitions, at
least historical, with parameters, constraints, which are not always the same -
to say the least - but at least with ambitions that are common
Several
German politicians have regularly expressed concern about the safety of some
French power plants near the border, in particular the one in Fessenheim, Upper
Rhine, which is due to close soon, and that Cattenom (Moselle). The two
countries will also continue their discussions in the autumn on the
introduction of a carbon floor price, which still lacks a common
position."
Comment: yes, our dear German friends are in a much
better hurry to shut down our nuclear power plants than to introduce a real
carbon tax. It's criminal for pollution and for the fight against climate
change!
The
obscure role of OFATE (Franco-German Office for Energy Transition)
In
the oral question, Senator Anne-Claire Loisier asked what was the merits of the
existence of a Franco-German renewable energy lobbyists' office established
within the Ministry of Ecology, and named the Franco-German Office for the
Energy Transition (OFATE). This office was created by the French and German
governments in 2006 with offices in the Ministries of Ecology in Paris and
Berlin, and its steering committee consists mainly of renewable energy
promoters.
« Anne-Catherine
Loisier draws the attention of the Minister of State, Minister of Ecological
and Solidarity Transition, to the representation of wind companies in the
Franco-German Office for Energy Transition (OFATE).
This
body is supposed to coordinate Franco-German policies. To this end, it
maintains its offices in the ministry's own premises and is funded by more than
a third of the department. Its steering
committee includes the four Franco-German EnR unions and many of the other
members have special interests in the sector. It would appear, therefore, that the wind
"lobby" is funded by the department itself.
Moreover,
the Franco-German report AGORA IDDRI ("Energywende and energy transition
by 2030") states that "[...] if nuclear capabilities are removed
from the French mix, the competitiveness of coal-fired power plants maintained
in the system in Germany is improved. Germany would therefore have a doubly
interest in France strengthening its wind energy production capacity because it
has many companies in this sector and the decline in French nuclear capacity
would make it more competitive coal-fired power plants and thus their
maintenance in Germany. It therefore
asks him for his analysis on these facts in relation to France's energy policy
interests. »
Comment: Anne-Claire Loisier is a Senator from the Gold
Coast, Centrist Union group. Fortunately, in the old world, there are a few
elected officials who do their job!
Here, for
a change, the Belgian nuclear power plants
Le Monde, 13
January 2016: "The Minister of the Environment of the Land of North
Rhine-Westphalia, Johannes Remmel, is asking the European Commission to check
the safety rules in force in Belgium. In Luxembourg, the Secretary of State for
Sustainable Development, Camille Gira, also expressed concern and called for
clarification on the situation in Tihange. German officials had previously
called for the closure of the unit, located 70 kilometres from the town of
Aachen, after microcracks were discovered on the steel tanks of several Belgian
reactors..
The government of the German regional state of
Rhineland-Palatinate decided on Tuesday to join a complaint by Greenpeace and
Benegora, a Belgian-Dutch consultation platform in the Antwerp region, against
extending the life of the power plants Tihange 1 and Doel 1 and 2. Rhineland-Palatinate calls for emergency
shutdown of these facilities to protect the population. »
Comment : Tihange 1: 962 MWe and Doel 1 and 2 have
been extended until 2025 by the Belgian government... with the support of the
Netherlands. Well, well....
Conclusion (Huffington Post Blog, 09/25/2017,
commenting on a report by France Energy on Energywende):
"In
the light of the facts, the increase in intermittent electricity production
(wind and photovoltaic) in place of nuclear power has only reinforced the role
of coal and gas, the only energies capable of compensating for the variability
of wind and sun, and for lack of viable storage method! Energy
efficiency gains were also largely overestimated in relation to the actual
behaviour of the population and industry.
Germany has once again acted as a clandestine passenger of European
integration, using the solidarity and stupidity of its partners to its own
benefit. The guaranteed supply of French and Austrian
electricity has enabled German electricity grids to offset the technical
effects of the "fatal" energy of its wind turbines and solar panels
unable to keep up with the real needs of consumption.
In short, Germany is flooding markets with electricity
when no one needs it and pumps its neighbors when the climate and the
production is capricious!
Well, nothing
better to add !
