Nuclear Power Plants: 37 Nuclear Reactors Permanently Shut Down in Europe Since Fukushima

Since Fukushima 37 nuclear power plants have already been permanently shut down in Europe
© wlad074 / Adobe StockMünster (renewablepress) - Since the nuclear accident in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011, a total of 37 nuclear reactors in Europe have been permanently shut down by the end of 2024. This trend of decommissioning nuclear power plants will continue until 2030 and will not be even remotely compensated by new plants.

This is the result of an analysis of data from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the current decommissioning plans of the affected countries conducted by the Internationales Wirtschaftsforum Regenerative Energien (IWR) in Münster.

According to the analysis, the number of decommissioned nuclear reactors in the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland will increase to 52 by the end of 2030, with a total capacity of 43,000 MW. Over the same period, the number of new plants will rise from three existing reactors (by the end of 2024) to a maximum of only six new plants with a total capacity of around 7,300 MW. This means that Europe will have 46 fewer nuclear power plants, with a total capacity of about 35,700 MW, available for electricity production by the end of 2030 compared to 2011, the year of the Fukushima nuclear accident.

The country ranking for nuclear reactor decommissioning between 2011 and the end of 2030 shows that the United Kingdom leads with 18 reactors shut down, followed by Germany (17), Spain (5), Belgium (5), Sweden (4), France (2), and Switzerland (1).

"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.

The main reason for the decline in nuclear power plant capacity is the severe 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 reactors in Europe with a capacity of 50,000 MW will already be 40 years old or older, far exceeding their originally planned operating lifespan of 30 years.

Even after 2030, further decommissionings are expected due to the aging of nuclear power plants, while planned new plants will rely on state subsidies due to the very high construction and financing risks and will continue to progress slowly. Even in the currently unlikely case of a rapid start of new nuclear plant construction, given the long construction times of 10 to 15 years per plant, it is not expected that these plants will be operational and available to supply electricity before 2040.


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Caption: Since Fukushima 37 nuclear power plants have already been permanently shut down in Europe
© wlad074 / Adobe Stock


Münster, 21 February 2025


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