Two nuclear reactors in the Eemshaven port would disrupt the local power grid and clash with existing green energy projects, according to an external study commissioned by port operator Groningen Seaports and reported by [RTV Noord].
The national government announced last summer that it is considering three potential sites for two new nuclear reactors, including two locations in the Eemshaven and one in Terneuzen in Zeeland, [nos.nl] reported. Grid operator TenneT views the Eemshaven as technically the best option, [nieuws.nl] reported.
Consultancy firm Common Futures evaluated the consequences for the northern Groningen region and concluded that selecting the Eemshaven would prove complex, particularly if the reactors occupy the current site of the Engie gas-fired Eemscentrale.
The Eemscentrale produces 1.8 gigawatts annually, but it would have to close by 2031 to clear ground for a nuclear facility that might not start operating until at least 2040, [nos.nl] reported.
“As far as we are concerned, the future of the Eemshaven lies in a flexible energy system in which offshore wind, hydrogen, storage, controllable power, and sustainable industry reinforce each other,” said Bart Jan Hoevers, director of Groningen Seaports, in the [Haarlems Dagblad]. “The analysis shows that two large nuclear power plants do not logically fit in there.”
Constructing nuclear reactors in the northern port area would jeopardize regional supply security and collide with planned investments in the local energy system, [nos.nl] reported. The consultancy report highlights that building a nuclear plant would obstruct the planned hydrogen network because mainland transport pipelines must cross the Eemscentrale property.
Wind energy from the North Sea and nuclear power would compete for the same transmission capacity on the high-voltage grid.
If more offshore wind power comes ashore in Eemshaven or if local electricity demand rises more slowly than anticipated, space shortages on the electricity grid will still emerge, [nos.nl] reported.
The province of Groningen and local municipalities have consistently expressed strong resistance against the central government’s nuclear ambitions, [nos.nl] reported.
The previous cabinet had promised that no nuclear facilities would appear in Groningen, making the government’s renewed focus on the Eemshaven feel like an ambush to local administrators, the [Haarlems Dagblad] reported. “Appalling, very indecent and a robbery tactic,” Groningen officials told the [Haarlems Dagblad] regarding the cabinet’s approach.
Citizens demonstrate against nuclear plants in the Eemshaven on Sunday in the city of Groningen, [RTV Noord] reported, following the mounting regional friction over the national strategy.
The cabinet intends to make a preliminary preferred choice by the end of this year, according to the [Haarlems Dagblad].
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